通勤學英語 15Mins Today

每日英語跟讀 Ep.K315: What Do You Think You Should Be Paid?

When she started her career in tech more than a decade ago, Shanae Chapman soon grew comfortable answering traditional interview questions: greatest strengths (time management, attention to detail), weaknesses (prioritization). “Tell me about yourself” was kind of tricky, at first. No one in her family had ever held a corporate job before, and the question is actually weird. What exactly did the interviewer want to know? She figured it out quickly enough.

十多年前，Shanae Chapman開始了她的技術職業生涯，她很快就習慣於回答傳統的面試問題：最大的優勢（時間管理，注重細節），弱點（優先順序）。"告訴我你自己"起初有點棘手。她家裡從來沒有人做過公司的工作，這個問題實際上很奇怪。面試官到底想知道什麼？她很快就想通了。

Still, one question kept derailing her job search: What are you currently making? Chapman was earning about $25,000 a year working a desk job at a university in Boston while she was in graduate school. She hoped to double that figure by moving into a new industry. But when she told recruiters her salary, lo and behold they would tell her that’s how much they were offering, too.

儘管如此，有一個問題一直困擾著她的求職：你目前在做什麼？查普曼在讀研究生期間，在波士頓的一所大學做上班族，每年的收入約為25000美元。她希望通過進入一個新行業，將這一數位翻一番。但是，當她告訴招聘人員她的薪水時，瞧瞧，他們會告訴她，這也是他們提供的金額。

A trap. “Why would I want to go to another job and make the same salary?” said Chapman, now 34 years old and a senior user experience researcher and designer in St. Louis. She stopped answering the question, instead telling recruiters her target salary. The strategy worked. She landed a role at IBM that paid $50,000 to $60,000.

分明是陷阱。"我為什麼要去找另一份工作，拿到同樣的薪水？"查普曼說，他現年34歲，是聖路易斯的一名高級用戶體驗研究員和設計師。她不再回答這個問題，而是告訴招聘人員她的目標薪水。這個策略奏效了。她在IBM找到了一個職位，薪水為5萬到6萬美元。

Searching for a new job this past year during a booming job market, now with years of experience at large companies like IBM and Boeing and at startups, Chapman had a vastly different experience. Now employers aren’t asking for her current salary. They’re asking for her salary requirements: What does she want to make?

在過去的一年裡，在蓬勃發展的就業市場中尋找新工作，現在在IBM和波音等大公司以及初創公司擁有多年的經驗，查普曼的經歷截然不同。現在僱主不要求她目前的薪水。他們要求她的薪水要求：她想做什麼？

“And honestly, if they didn’t ask — I would ask them,” Chapman said. If they don’t answer, she sees it as a red flag.

查普曼說：「而老實說，如果他們沒問，我就會問他們。」如果他們不回應，她就認為是警訊。

The salary question has emerged as the thorniest piece of the hiring process, according to job seekers, recruiters and negotiation experts. The question itself is seen by some as progress — asking a requirement is better than asking salary history, and 16 states, including Massachusetts, New York and California, have completely banned asking job candidates their pay history — but it is still full of pitfalls.

根據求職者，招聘人員和談判專家的說法，工資問題已成為招聘過程中最棘手的部分。這個問題本身被一些人視為進步——提出要求比詢問工資歷史要好，包括馬薩諸塞州、紐約州和加利福尼亞州在內的16個州已經完全禁止向求職者詢問他們的薪酬歷史——但它仍然充滿了陷阱。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6068851

每日英語跟讀 Ep.K314: About Animals - 2-headed baby turtle thrives at Massachusetts animal refuge

A rare two-headed diamondback terrapin turtle is alive and kicking, with all six of its legs, at the Birdsey Cape Wildlife Center in Massachusetts.

一隻罕見的雙頭菱背水龜還活著，用它的六條腿在馬薩諸塞州的伯德西角野生動物中心踢球。

A threatened species, this turtle is feeding well on blood worms and food pellets. The two heads operate independently, coming up for air at different times, and inside its shell are two gastrointestinal systems to feed both sides of its body.

作為一種受威脅的物種，這種以血蟲和食物顆粒為食。兩個頭部獨立運作，在不同時間上來呼吸空氣，其外殼內有兩個胃腸道系統，為身體的兩側提供食物。

The turtle originally came from a nest in West Barnstable that researchers determined was in a hazardous location and needed to be moved. After hatching, turtles are sent to different care centers to be monitored before their release in the spring.

這隻最初來自西巴恩斯特布爾的一個巢穴，研究人員確定該巢穴位於危險地點，需要移動。孵化后，海龜被送往不同的護理中心進行監測，然後在春季釋放。

The two heads are nicknamed Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen after the twin child stars.

這兩位頭像被昵稱為Mary-Kate和Ashley Olsen，以雙胞胎童星的名字命名。

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Mama bear, 3 cubs climb tree, take nap in urban Virginia 熊媽媽和3隻熊寶寶在維吉尼亞州市區打瞌睡

A mama black bear and three cubs clambered up a tree and napped in the middle of a Virginia neighborhood before voluntarily ambling on hours later, wildlife officials said Tuesday.

野生動物官員週二表示，一隻黑熊媽媽和三隻幼崽爬上一棵樹，在弗吉尼亞州的一個社區中間打盹，幾個小時后自願漫步。

The four black bears left their lofty perch on aptly named Bruin Drive in the city of Chesapeake around midnight Monday.

這四隻黑熊在週一午夜左右離開了他們在切薩皮克市恰如其分地命名為Bruin Drive的高聳棲息處。

Officials had asked residents near the tree to stay inside and blocked off the road from outside visitors in order to give the bears “space, quiet, and time.”

官員們要求樹附近的居民留在裡面，並封鎖了外面遊客的道路，以便給熊"空間，安靜和時間"。

Police were first alerted to the bears about 2 a.m. Monday, The Virginian-Pilot reported.

據弗吉尼亞飛行員報導，警方首先在周一淩晨2點左右接到熊警報。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1496812 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1493306

每日英語跟讀 Ep.K313: About Ukraine - Ukrainian military long on morale but short on weaponry

When Russia annexed Ukraine’s Crimean Peninsula and threw its support behind separatists in the country’s east more than seven years ago, Kyiv’s underfunded and disorganized armed forces struggled to mount a credible response.

七年多前，當俄羅斯吞併烏克蘭的克里米亞半島並支援該國東部的分離主義分子時，基輔資金不足且組織混亂的武裝部隊努力做出可信的回應。

Now, amid fears that a Russian troop buildup near Ukraine’s border could signal a possible attack, military experts say Moscow would face stronger resistance this time.

現在，由於擔心俄羅斯軍隊在烏克蘭邊境附近的集結可能預示著可能的襲擊，軍事專家表示，莫斯科這次將面臨更強的抵抗。

But they emphasize that Ukraine would be well short of what it needs to counter Russia’s overwhelming superiority.

但他們強調，烏克蘭遠遠達不到對抗俄羅斯壓倒性優勢所需的水準。

Years of fighting the separatists have given Ukrainian veterans like Col. Viacheslav Vlasenko the battlefield experience for such a fight. "We Ukrainians are defending our land, and there is no place for us to retreat,’’ said Vlasenko.

分離主義分子多年的戰鬥為像維亞切斯拉夫·弗拉森科上校這樣的烏克蘭退伍軍人提供了這種戰鬥的戰場經驗。"我們烏克蘭人正在保衛我們的土地，我們沒有地方可以撤退，"弗拉森科說。

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Russia, US square off at UN over Ukraine crisis 俄美在聯合國就烏克蘭危機展開對決

Russia and the United States face off Monday at the UN Security Council over Moscow’s troop buildup on the Ukrainian border, as Western nations intensify their high-stakes diplomatic push to avert open conflict in Europe.

俄羅斯和美國週一在聯合國安理會就莫斯科在烏克蘭邊境的部隊集結對峙，因為西方國家加強了他們高風險的外交努力，以避免歐洲的公開衝突。

With tensions soaring, the United States has declared itself ready to push back against any "disinformation" Moscow put forward in what is expected to be one of the most closely watched United Nations sessions in years.

隨著緊張局勢的飆升，美國已宣佈準備反擊莫斯科在預計將是多年來最受關注的聯合國會議之一中提出的任何「虛假資訊」。

The US-requested Council meeting, at 1600 GMT, comes as fears grow of an imminent incursion into Ukraine, despite Kremlin denials.

美國要求在格林尼治標準時間1600點召開的安理會會議之際，儘管克裡姆林宮否認，但人們對即將入侵烏克蘭的擔憂日益加劇。

Russia was expected to try to block the 15-member Council from holding the meeting at all － with its envoy to the UN on Monday calling it part of a US bid to whip up "hysteria" over Ukraine.

預計俄羅斯將試圖阻止由15個成員組成的理事會舉行會議 - 其駐聯合國特使週一稱這是美國試圖煽動烏克蘭"歇斯底裡"的一部分。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1494094 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1499125

每日英語跟讀 Ep.K312: About Winter - Alaska faces ’Icemageddon’ as temperatures swing wildly

Extreme weather in Alaska that has brought record high temperatures and torrential downpours has left authorities in the far northern US state warning of "Icemageddon".

阿拉斯加出現的極端天氣帶來破紀錄的高溫和豪雨，使這個美國遙遠北方州的政府警告「冰雪末日」。

Hours after thermometers on Kodiak Island in the south reached 19.4 degrees Celsius － the warmest December temperature ever recorded in Alaska － the interior of the state saw 25 millimeters of rain fall in just a few hours, a downpour unseen in decades.

在南部科迪亞克島的溫度計達到攝氏19.4度（阿拉斯加有記錄以來最溫暖的12月溫度）數小時后，該州內部在短短幾個小時內就下了25毫米的降雨，這是幾十年來從未見過的傾盆大雨。

Then when temperatures plummeted again, it all froze. The state’s transportation department has coined the neologism － a play on "Armageddon" － to describe the chilly impasse.

然後，當氣溫再次驟降時，一切都凍結了。該州的交通部門創造了這個新詞 - 一個關於"世界末日"的戲劇 - 來描述寒冷的僵局。

"We’re experiencing an unprecedented series of winter storms," the department tweeted.

"我們正在經歷一系列前所未有的冬季風暴，"該部門在推特上寫道。

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In Denmark, a snow storm means people overnight in an IKEA 在丹麥，一場暴風雪讓民眾在一間「宜家家居」過夜

In northern Denmark, an IKEA showroom turned into a vast bedroom. Six customers and about two dozen employees were stranded by a snowstorm and spent the night in the store, sleeping in the beds that are usually on show.

在丹麥北部，宜家的陳列室變成了一個巨大的臥室。六名顧客和大約二十多名員工被暴風雪困住，在商店裡過夜，睡在通常展示的床上。

Up to 30 centimeters of snow fell, trapping the customers and employees when the department store in Aalborg closed on Wednesday evening.

週三晚上，奧爾堡的百貨公司關閉時，高達30釐米的積雪困住了顧客和員工。

“We slept in the furniture exhibitions and our showroom on the first floor, where we have beds, mattresses and sofa beds,” store manager Peter Elmose told the Ekstra Bladet tabloid. People could “pick the exact bed they always have wanted to try.”

"我們睡在傢俱展和一樓的陳列室里，那裡有床，床墊和沙發床，"商店經理Peter Elmose告訴Ekstra Bladet小報。人們可以「選擇他們一直想嘗試的確切床」。

Elmose said they spent the evening watching television and eating, adding it went “super well. It’s been a good night. All fun.”

埃爾莫斯說，他們晚上看電視和吃飯，並補充說它「超級順利」。這是一個美好的夜晚。一切都很有趣。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1497858 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1488145

每日英語跟讀 Ep.K311: The Winter Games — a different kind of Olympics

The first so-called modern Olympics took place in 1896 in Athens, Greece. But the inaugural Winter Olympics were not held until 1924 in Chamonix, France.

第一屆所謂的現代奧運會於1896年在希臘雅典舉行。但首屆冬季奧運會直到1924年才在法國霞慕尼舉行。

From 1924 to 1992, the Winter and Summer Olympics were the same year. In ’92 the Winter Games were celebrated in Albertville, France, followed by the Summer Games in Barcelona, Spain.

從1924年到1992年，冬季和夏季奧運會是同一年。92年，冬季奧運會在法國阿爾貝維爾舉行，隨後在西班牙巴塞羅那舉行夏季奧運會。

Then change came.

然後就改變了。

Since 1994, an Olympics has been held every two years. The ’94 Winter Olympics took place in Lillehammer, Norway, followed by the Summer Games in 1996 in Atlanta, the US. Nagano, Japan, was next in 1998 with the Winter Games. That pattern was broken by the postponement of the 2020 Tokyo Summer Games until 2021 because of the coronavirus pandemic.

自1994年以來，每兩年舉行一次奧運會。94年冬季奧運會在挪威利勒哈默爾舉行，隨後於1996年在美國亞特蘭大舉行夏季奧運會。日本長野在1998年是冬季奧運會的下一個。由於冠狀病毒大流行，2020年東京夏季運動會推遲到2021年，打破了這種模式。

The Beijing Winter Games opened on Friday last week, just six months after Tokyo closed. They’ll be followed by the Summer Olympics in 2024 in Paris, France. Here’s a breakdown of why things have unfolded as they have.

北京冬季運動會於上週五開幕，距離東京奧運會閉幕僅六個月。緊隨其後的是2024年在法國巴黎舉行的夏季奧運會。以下是事情為什麼會像現在這樣展開的細分。

WHY WERE THE GAMES MOVED TO EVERY TWO YEARS?

Olympic historian Bill Mallon suggests the International Olympic Committee (IOC) was looking for more revenue. The IOC, he says, “thought they could get more sponsorship money by spreading the Games out more.” Every two years also kept the Olympics in the public eye, and the move dovetailed with the increasing commercialization and professionalization of the Games.

為什麼奧運會要每兩年舉辦一次？

奧運歷史學家比爾·馬龍（Bill Mallon）表示，國際奧會（IOC）正在尋找更多的收入。他說，國際奧會「認為他們可以通過更多地傳播奧運會來獲得更多的讚助資金。

每兩年一次，奧運會也保持在公眾視野中，此舉與奧運會日益商業化和專業化相吻合。

BEIJING: FIRST FOR BOTH WINTER AND SUMMER

Beijing is the most unlikely city to be the first to host both Summer and Winter Olympics. Of all the Winter Olympic hosts, it has the least tradition in winter sports.

北京：冬季和夏季第一

北京是最不可能同時舉辦夏季和冬季奧運會的城市。在所有冬季奧運會主辦方中，它擁有最少的冬季運動傳統。

Beijing was a longshot for 2022 until six European countries — including favorites Norway and Sweden — dropped out for cost or political reasons. Germany and Switzerland said “no” in referendums. The IOC was left to choose between Beijing and Almaty, Kazakhstan. The Beijing Winter Olympics are expected to draw about 2,900 athletes from about 90 national Olympic committees. The Tokyo Olympics six months ago attracted 11,000 from just over 200 national bodies.

北京2022冬奧本是幾乎不可能的計劃，直到六個歐洲國家 - 包括最受歡迎的挪威和瑞典 - 由於成本或政治原因退出。德國和瑞士在公投中說"不"。國際奧會只能在北京和哈薩克阿拉木圖之間做出選擇。

北京冬奧會預計將吸引來自約90個國家奧會的約2900名運動員。六個月前的東京奧運會吸引了來自200多個國家機構的11000人。 Source article: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2022/02/08/2003772708

Topic: The ‘Right to Repair’ Movement Gains Ground

If you buy a product — a car, a smartphone, or even a tractor — and it breaks, should it be easier for you to fix it yourself?

如果你買了一個產品，例如一輛汽車、一部智慧型手機，甚至是一台拖拉機，結果它壞了，是不是應該讓你自己修理起來更容易些呢？

Manufacturers of a wide range of products have made it increasingly difficult over the years to repair things, for instance by limiting availability of parts or by putting prohibitions on who gets to tinker with them. It affects not only game consoles or farm equipment, but cellphones, military gear, refrigerators, automobiles and even hospital ventilators, the lifesaving devices that have proved crucial this year in fighting the COVID-19 pandemic.

多年來，許多種產品的製造商都讓維修變得愈來愈困難，比如限制零件的取得，或對何人有權動手維修施加限制。受影響的產品不止於遊戲主機或農用機具，還有手機、軍用設備、冰箱、汽車，甚至包括今年對抗新冠病毒疫情發揮關鍵作用的救生設備—醫院裡的呼吸器。

Now, a movement known as “right to repair” is starting to make progress in pushing for laws that prohibit restrictions like these.

現在，一項名為「維修權」的運動在推動禁止此類限制的立法上，正取得進展。

In August, Democrats introduced a bill in Congress to block manufacturers’ limits on medical devices, spurred by the pandemic. In Europe, the European Commission announced plans in March for new right-to-repair rules that would cover phones, tablets and laptops by 2021.

今年8月，美國民主黨因防疫需要而在國會提出一項法案，旨在阻止製造商對醫療裝置設下限制。在歐洲，歐盟執行委員會3月宣布了新的維修權規定計畫，在2021年以前實施，涵蓋手機、平板電腦和筆記型電腦。

And in more than 20 statehouses nationwide, right-to-repair legislation has been introduced in recent years by both Republicans and Democrats.

近年來，在全美國20多個州的議會裡，共和黨和民主黨都提出了維修權法案。

Over the summer, the House advanced a funding bill that includes a requirement that the Federal Trade Commission complete a report on anti-competitive practices in the repair market and present its findings to Congress and the public.

今年夏天，眾議院推動了一項資助法案，其中責成聯邦貿易委員會做成一份關於維修市場反競爭行為的報告，並向國會和民眾提交調查結果。

The goal of right-to-repair rules, advocates say, is to require companies to make their parts, tools and information available to consumers and repair shops in order to keep devices from ending up in the scrap heap. They argue that the rules restrict people’s use of devices that they own and encourage a throwaway culture by making repairs too difficult.

倡議人士表示，維修權規定的目的是要求企業向消費者和維修商家提供零組件、工具及資訊，以免這些裝置最終被扔進垃圾堆。他們主張，目前的慣例對人們使用自己的裝置設下限制，並透過讓維修變得太過困難的方式，助長了一種用完即丟的文化。

They also argue that it’s part of a culture of planned obsolescence — the idea that products are designed to be short-lived in order to encourage people to buy more stuff. That contributes to wasted natural resources and energy use at a time when climate change requires movement in the opposite direction to rein in planet-warming emissions.

他們還認為，這是一種計畫性淘汰文化的一部分，即為了鼓勵人們購買更多東西，產品被設計成短命的。在氣候變遷需要採取反向行動來控制溫室氣體排放的此際，這助長了自然資源的浪費以及能源的使用。

Manufacturing a new device or appliance is still largely reliant on polluting sources of energy — electricity generated from burning fossil fuels, for instance — and constitutes the largest environmental impact for most products.

製造一種新設備或裝置在很大程度上，仍仰賴會造成汙染的能源，例如燃燒化石燃料產生的電力，對大多數產品而言，這正是構成最大環境影響的因素。

Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/5015841

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Topic: UK gamers and politicians take aim at console ’scalpers’

Furious British gamers and lawmakers are training their sights on "scalpers" who are buying up coveted PS5 and Xbox consoles and selling them online at vastly inflated prices.

氣沖沖的英國玩家和議員將焦點指向「黃牛」，這些黃牛買光搶手的PS5、Xbox電玩主機，然後在網路上以大幅灌水的價格出售。

The popular consoles have also been hard to come by in other parts of the world, but in Britain anger has boiled over to the point where some lawmakers want to ban the practice of reselling them online at higher prices.

這些熱門電玩主機在世界其他地方也一機難求，但是在英國掀起的怒火已沸騰，一些議員為此打算禁止網路高價轉售的作法。

While a PS5 normally costs between £360 and £450 depending on the model, its median resale price on sites like eBay is £650-£750, according to US researcher Michael Driscoll.

根據美國研究員麥可．德里斯考的說法，通常一部PS5依版本差異，售價在360英鎊到450英鎊之間，但在諸如「電子海灣」的網站上轉售價中位數為650到750英鎊不等。

Next Article

Topic: Singaporean student plays Pokemon on ingenious ‘Melonboy’

想像你搭捷運時突然有個年輕男子拿著一顆鑲有小螢幕的西瓜淡定的坐到你旁邊，開始認真的玩。

Imagine that you are on the MRT and a young man sitting next to you is playing video games on a watermelon-like console.

近期，就有新加坡民眾在捷運上目睹這奇葩的一幕。一位星國少年自製了一台「西瓜Game Boy」，上面不僅有螢幕和實體的按鈕，裡面還裝載了近期最流行的寶可夢遊戲軟體。

That’s the unusual sight some people recently experienced in Singapore when a teenager was seen playing “Pokemon Go” on a self-built console made of a watermelon, a screen and some buttons.

就讀新加坡管理大學的Cedrick Tan，近日在YouTube上分享了自製的水果寶可夢GameBoy，揭露製作過程和最後實驗結果。

Cedrick Tan, a student from the Singapore Management University, has been tinkering with the project on YouTube which has led to him building his own version of Pokemon Emerald inside a fruit.

一向天馬行空的他其實已經有無數的作品，包括將一個地圖放進虛擬實境和利用微軟Excel發送訊息至通訊軟體Telegram。如今他又再次突破自己，將遊戲機成功的裝進蔬果內。

An avid creator, Tan’s long list of projects include turning a map into a blank canvas for augmented reality, finding a way to send messages to Telegram using Microsoft Excel, and building a playable Game Boy Advance inside a melon.

當被問起做這個作品的過程時，Cedrick表示其實非常簡單，因為西瓜內部空間非常足夠，電路的連接也非常方便。

When asked about his project, Tan said: “When it came down to actually making the Melonboy, it happened to be really convenient seeing as the melon was very spacious on the inside allowing me to wire everything up with ease.”

遊戲機目前可以成功的開啟，使用的軟體也和原版相符，而挖空的西瓜塞進了一個電池、數個實體按鍵、一個1.8寸的螢幕和小喇叭音響。

The Game Boy emulator can then be loaded and run with the same software as the original game. Inside the scooped-out melon, a power bank, buttons, a 1.8-inch screen, loudspeakers are assembled.

Cedrick表示，因為買到瑕疵零件，導致製作過程延宕，西瓜GamBoy花了他將近一個月才完成。若沒有遇到這些問題的話，大概一週以內就能完成，他自信滿滿地說。

According to Tan, the construction took about a month; though he blamed the time-length on a faulty device integral to the game boy. Without the problem, the watermelon-based console could have been finished in less than a week, he said.

「身為一個資管系的學生，我對於電機其實一知半解，所以一切從零開始學，花了一點時間。」Cedrick 說。然而，他對於自己的成果表示滿意，成功的製作出一個有著完整介面的「攜帶式」遊戲機。

“As an information systems student, I have no background in electrical engineering, so learning that from scratch took some time,” Tan recalled. The result is a working game console, complete with a Game Boy Advance emulator and a game controller.

吸睛的西瓜GameBoy影片獲得廣大民眾迴響，這大概也是Cedrick最大的收穫。

But the best thing about Tan’s video is the public’s reaction to the watermelon game boy.

Cedrick也實驗過將西瓜帶去賣場玩，捕捉到許多人好奇的眼光。

On a visit to the market, he played the game console surrounded by real watermelons, which provoked weird looks from passers-by.

Cedrick憶起他曾帶著西瓜進火車站，當時還被站務員攔截，詢問他手上的大西瓜是怎麼回事。

Tan also recalled being quizzed about the device when he brought it into a train station.

一位緊張的員工甚至跑到他身邊詢問奇形怪狀的西瓜用途，聽完他的解釋後，員工還非常興奮地將他拉回辦公室要他將作品展現給其他同事看。

A distressed SMRT staff asked him about the strange device, and after hearing his explanation, requested him to show it to her colleagues.

此外，Cedrick坦言他曾經被誤認為西瓜炸彈客，而他從沒想過帶著西瓜會碰上這樣的麻煩。

In addition, Tan said he also experienced another unforeseen problem where someone complained that he was carrying a watermelon bomb.

Cedrick也將自己的作品分享到美版PTT Reddit上面，不僅獲得外國網友的讚賞，還有許多人鼓勵他之後利用酪梨和椰子製作遊戲機。

Tan also posted on Reddit about his clumsy contraption, where he received plenty of praise, inspiring him to build different versions in the future, including avocados and coconuts.

不幸地，Cedrick透露，影片上傳YouTube後過了幾天，西瓜就爛掉了。

Unfortunately, Tan revealed that the watermelon had rotted just a few days after his YouTube video was uploaded.

然而，Cedrick表示將會繼續創作，未來也規劃以榴槤製作遊戲，將其命名為「臭Boy痛苦遊戲」。

However, Tan vowed to continue making his creations and could take on the challenge of turning the durian into a game that could be called StinkyBoy’s Pain Game.

Source article: https://chinapost.nownews.com/20200827-1697494

主題: 來鬆鬆舌頭，朗讀些時事 Reading out loud

文章一：What is the metaverse ?

A metaverse is a network of 3D virtual worlds focused on social connection. In futurism and science fiction, the term is often described as a hypothetical iteration of the Internet as a single, universal virtual world that is facilitated by the use of virtual and augmented reality headsets. Some metaverse iterations involve integration between virtual and physical spaces and virtual economies, often including a significant interest in advancing virtual reality technology. The term has seen considerable use as a buzzword for public relations purposes to exaggerate development progress for various related technologies and projects.

元宇宙是一個專注於社會聯繫的3D虛擬世界網路。在未來主義和科幻小說中，這個術語通常被描述為互聯網的假設反覆運算，作為一個單一的，通用的虛擬世界，通過使用虛擬和增強現實耳機來促進。一些元宇宙反覆運算涉及虛擬和物理空間以及虛擬經濟之間的集成，通常包括對推進虛擬實境技術的濃厚興趣。該術語作為公共關係目的的流行語，被大量使用，以誇大各種相關技術和專案的發展進展。

Source article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Metaverse

文章二：What is Netflix ?

Netflix, Inc. is an American subscription streaming service and production company. Launched on August 29, 1997, it offers a library of films and television series through distribution deals as well as its own productions, known as Netflix Originals.

As of December 31, 2021, Netflix had over 221.8 million subscribers worldwide, including 75.2 million in the United States and Canada, 74million in Europe, the Middle East and Africa, 39.9 million in Latin America and 32.7 million in Asia-Pacific.

Netflix can be accessed via internet browser on computers, or via application software installed on smart TVs, set-top boxes connected to televisions, tablet computers, smartphones, digital media players, Blu-ray Disc players, video game consoles and virtual reality headsets on the list of Netflix-compatible devices.

Netflix， Inc.是一家美國訂閱流媒體服務和製作公司。它於1997年8月29日推出，通過發行協定以及自己的作品（稱為Netflix Originals）提供電影和電視劇庫。

截至 2021 年 12 月 31 日，Netflix 在全球擁有超過 2.218 億使用者，其中美國和加拿大擁有 7520 萬使用者，歐洲、中東和非洲擁有 7400 萬使用者，拉丁美洲擁有 3990 萬使用者，亞太地區擁有 3270 萬使用者。

Netflix可以通過電腦上的互聯網瀏覽器訪問，也可以通過安裝在智慧電視上的應用程式軟體，連接到電視的機頂盒，平板電腦，智慧手機，數位媒體播放機，藍光光碟播放機，視頻遊戲機和虛擬實境耳機在Netflix相容設備清單中訪問。

Source article: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Netflix

每日英語跟讀 Ep.K310: We’re Drowning in Celebrity Beauty Brands

Anya Dua, the 17-year-old founder of Gen Z Identity Lab, an online platform for Gen Zers to express their views on politics, mental health, climate change and culture, remembers the first (and last) time she bought makeup from a celebrity beauty brand.

17歲的安雅．杜亞是「Z世代身分實驗室」創辦人，這是一個讓Z世代表達政治、心理健康、氣候變遷和文化觀點的線上平台。她回想起第一次（也是最後一次）購買名人自創美妝品牌化妝品的經驗。

She was 12 and used her mom’s credit card to order a $29 Kylie Lip Kit in Candy K, a matte pink liquid lipstick and matching lip liner. Kylie Jenner’s debut makeup product sold out in seconds when it went on sale in 2015 (the website crashed, too), catapulting the youngest Kardashian-Jenner sibling to beauty mogul status at age 18.

當時她12歲，用母親的信用卡訂購一套29美元的裸粉色凱莉唇彩組，包含一支粉紅色霧面液態唇膏和同色唇線筆。凱莉珍娜首次推出的自創品牌化妝品2015年一開賣，就在幾秒內售罄（官網也當機），讓卡戴珊-珍娜家族中年紀最輕的她，年僅18歲就躍登為美妝天后。

“It was a huge thing,” Dua said. “You needed to have one.” Lip Kits became so popular that they hit the New York City bar and bat mitzvah circuit. Emcees would toss the liquid lip colors and liners into a sea of dancing tweens in bandage dresses.

杜亞說：「那時超轟動的，一定要擁有。」這套唇彩組變得如此熱門，打進紐約市猶太教成年禮的圈子，主持人會把液態唇膏和唇線筆丟向一大群穿著緊身裝跳舞的青少女。

Fast-forward five years.

快轉五年就過了。

The global beauty market, which last year generated nearly $500 billion in sales, according to Euromonitor, a research firm, is teeming with celebrities, inundating social media feeds with lip gloss, face lotion and, most recently, vibrators (not technically beauty but beauty adjacent), with the promise of plump lips, glowing skin and a better sex life.

去年營業額近5000億美元（根據研究公司歐睿的資料）的全球美妝市場，如今擠滿了名人，使社群媒體貼文充斥著唇蜜、臉部乳液和最近出現的按摩棒（嚴格說來不是美妝品，但也接近了），保證給人豐唇、亮澤的肌膚和更好的性生活。

New lines come out at a dizzying rate. There’s Harry Styles’ Pleasing, nail polish in tiny glass jars that look like old-fashioned perfume bottles, and Machine Gun Kelly’s UN/DN LAQR, nail polish with “paint splatter” shades and brushes for nail art.

新品問世速度之快，讓人眼花撩亂：有英國歌手哈利史泰爾斯自創品牌Pleasing，把指甲油裝在迷你玻璃罐，看來像老派的香水瓶；有美國歌手機關槍凱利自創品牌UN/DN LAQR，用「潑漆」色調和刷頭的指甲油做指甲彩繪。

Ariana Grande has a new makeup line, space-themed, as does Chiara Ferragni, pink and sparkly. Billie Eilish and Addison Rae have released fragrances. There’s Lori Harvey’s (daughter of Steve Harvey) SKN by LH skin care collection, and Demi Lovato’s Demi Wand, an eight-speed vibrator (created with Bellesa, an internet pornography site marketed to women).

美國歌手亞莉安娜推出新的美妝產品線，以太空為主題，義大利時尚網紅琪亞拉法拉格尼也是，粉色且閃閃發亮。美國歌手怪奇比莉和網紅艾蒂森蕾都發布香水產品。還有洛瑞哈維（美國電視主持人史蒂夫哈維的女兒）的SKN by LH護膚系列，以及美國歌手黛咪洛瓦特的Demi Wand八段變速按摩棒（與鎖定女性的成人網站Bellesa合作）。

Hailey Bieber has just confirmed that her Rhode Beauty will go on sale next year. (Rhode is her middle name.)

加拿大歌手小賈斯汀的妻子海莉才剛證實，她的個人品牌「羅德美妝」明年上市。（羅德是她中間名。）

It’s starting to feel like satire. When the Alex Rodriguez concealer for men (a creation with Hims & Hers) landed in May and populated celebrity news accounts like The Shade Room, commenters thought it was a joke.

這開始讓人覺得諷刺。美國職棒退役球星A-Rod推出的男性遮瑕膏（與遠距醫療新創公司Hims & Hers合作）5月上市，並受到The Shade Room這類名人新聞帳號大幅報導時，一些評論家覺得不過是個玩笑。

“When I see a celebrity beauty brand, I just don’t buy it,” Dua said.

杜亞說：「現在我看到名人自創美妝品牌，就是不會買。」Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6051426

每日英語跟讀 Ep.K309: Social Media Is Unreliable In Publishing

A book by Billie Eilish seemed like a great bet. One of the most famous pop stars in the world, Eilish has 97 million followers on Instagram and another 6 million on Twitter. If just a fraction of them bought her book, it would be a hit.

「怪奇比莉」出書看似穩賺不賠。身為全球數一數二的流行歌手，她在IG有9700萬追隨者，在推特有600萬，只要有一小部分捧場，書就可以大賣。

But her self-titled book has sold about 64,000 hardcover copies since it came out in May, according to NPD BookScan, which tracks most printed books sold in the United States — not necessarily a disappointing number, unless Eilish got a big advance. Which, of course, she did. The book cost her publisher well over $1 million.

不過，追蹤美國多數印刷書籍銷量的出版業數據商NPD BookScan資料顯示，她這本同名書5月上市以來，賣了大約6萬4000本精裝本。除非怪奇比莉得到一大筆預付金，銷售數字不算太差，當然，她的確收到了。這本書花了出版社超過100萬美元。

It’s difficult to predict whether a book will be a hit. Every book is different, an individual work of art or culture, so when the publishing industry tries to forecast demand for new titles, it is, however thoughtfully, guessing. Because there are so few reliable metrics to look at, social-media followings have become some of the main data points publishers use to try to make their guesses more educated.

很難預測一本書是否會熱賣。每本書都不一樣，都是個別的藝術或文化作品，所以當出版業企圖預測新書需求時，不論考慮多周到，都是用猜的。由於可檢視的可靠指標太少，社群媒體追隨者數量便成了出版社用來讓猜測變得更有依據的一些最重要數據點。

An author’s following has become a standard part of the equation when publishers are deciding whether to acquire a book. Followings can affect who gets a book deal and how big an advance that author is paid, especially when it comes to nonfiction. But despite their importance, they are increasingly seen as unpredictable gauges of how well a book is actually going to sell.

當出版社決定是否出書時，作者的追隨者數量成了算式的標準部分。追隨者數量能影響誰會獲得出書合約，以及作者能拿到多少預付版稅，尤其是非虛構作品。不過，儘管追隨者數量很重要，判斷書籍實際銷量時，卻愈來愈不可預測。

Even having one of the biggest social-media followings in the world is not a guarantee.

就算社群媒體追隨者數量在全球名列前茅，也不能保證什麼。

“The only reliable part about it,” said Shannon DeVito, director of books at Barnes & Noble, “is that it’s unreliable.”

美國邦諾圖書總監香農．德維托說：「追隨者數量唯一可靠的地方，就是它並不可靠。」

An author’s platform has long been something publishers look at — does she have a radio show, for example, or a regular guest spot on TV? But as local news outlets and book coverage have dwindled, the avenues for book publicity have shrunk, making an author’s ability to help get the word out more crucial. And when an author speaks to her followers about a book she wrote, she is talking to people who are at least a little bit interested in what she has to share.

作者的平台向來是出版社留意的地方。例如，作者有自己的廣播節目，或定期上電視節目當來賓嗎？不過，隨著地方新聞媒體和書籍相關報導式微，打書的管道也縮減，使作者的宣傳功力更形重要。而當作者對追隨者談到自己寫的書時，談話的對象至少對作者分享的東西有點興趣。

“It’s become more and more important as the years went on,” said Marc Resnick, executive editor at St. Martin’s Press. “We learned some hard lessons along the way, which is that a tweet or a post is not necessarily going to sell any books, if it’s not the right person with the right book and the right followers at the right time.”

紐約聖馬丁出版社總編輯雷斯尼克說：「隨著一年年過去，有件事變得愈來愈重要。我們一路上學到一些艱澀的教訓，那就是，如果不是對的作者寫了對的書，又在對的時間遇到對的追隨者，一則推文或貼文不見得就能把書賣出去。」Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6051423

每日英語跟讀 Ep.K308: A $550 Million Springsteen Deal? It’s Glory Days for Catalog Sales.

In 1972, a struggling New Jersey musician hustled into Manhattan for an audition at Columbia Records, using an acoustic guitar borrowed from his former drummer.

1972年，一位還在力爭上游的新澤西樂手匆匆忙忙趕到曼哈頓參加哥倫比亞唱片公司的試唱，使用的是一把向他之前的鼓手借來的民謠吉他。

“I had to haul it ‘Midnight Cowboy’-style over my shoulder on the bus and through the streets of the city,” the rocker, Bruce Springsteen, later recalled in his memoirs.

搖滾歌手布魯斯史普林斯汀後來在回憶錄中描述這段往事：「在公車上，我不得不像《午夜牛郎》那樣將吉他扛在肩上，穿過城市的街道。」

Half a century later, he can afford plenty of guitars. Last month Sony, which now owns Columbia, announced that it acquired Springsteen’s entire body of work — his recordings and his songwriting catalog — for what two people briefed on the deal said was about $550 million.

半世紀後，他買得起很多吉他。擁有哥倫比亞的索尼音樂上個月宣布，收購史普林斯汀的全部作品，他的唱片和創作曲目。兩位知情人士透露，這樁交易的價格約為5.5億美元。

The price, which may be the richest ever paid for the work of a single musician, caused jaws to drop throughout the music industry. But it was only the latest mega-transaction in a year in which many prominent artists’ catalogs have been sold, fetching eye-popping prices.

這可能是有史以來向單一音樂家作品支付的最高價格，讓整個音樂產業大吃一驚，但這只是一年中許多知名藝人出售歌曲曲目的最新一樁大型交易，獲得的價格令人咋舌。

The catalog market was already bubbling a year ago when Bob Dylan sold his songwriting rights for more than $300 million, but since then it has maintained a steady boil. The list of major artists who have recently sold their work, in full or in part, includes Paul Simon, Neil Young, Stevie Nicks, Tina Turner, Mötley Crüe, Shakira and the Red Hot Chili Peppers, many for eight-figure payouts or more. The industry is abuzz about impending deals for Sting and the songwriting catalog of David Bowie.

一年前，當巴布狄倫以超過3億美元價格賣出他的創作權時，音樂曲目市場已開始出現榮景，此後熱度一直不減。最近將作品全部售出或部分售出的主要藝人名單包括保羅賽門、尼爾楊、史蒂薇妮克絲、蒂娜透納、克魯小丑樂團、夏奇拉及嗆辣紅椒樂團，很多價格都高達八位數或是更多。業界正對史汀和大衛鮑伊歌曲的創作目錄即將達成的協議金額議論紛紛。

“Almost everything now is transacting,” said Barry M. Massarsky, an economist who specializes in calculating the value of music catalogs on behalf of investors. “In the last year alone, we did 300 valuations worth over $6.5 billion,” he added.

專門為投資者計算音樂曲目價值的經濟學家巴瑞．馬薩斯基說：「現在幾乎所有東西都在進行交易。光是去年一年，我們就進行了300筆估價，總值超過65億美元。」

Not long ago, music was seen as a collapsing business, with rampant piracy and declining sales. No longer.

不久前，由於盜版猖獗和銷量下滑，音樂被視為一個崩潰中的產業；現在情況不再是這樣。

Streaming and the global growth of subscription services like Spotify, Apple Music and YouTube have turned the industry’s fortunes around. One result is a spike in the pricing of catalogs of music rights to both recordings and to the songs themselves.

串流服務與Spotify、Apple Music和YouTube等全球訂閱服務成長，已經扭轉該產業的命運，結果使得唱片和歌曲本身的音樂版權曲目價格飆漲。

New investors, including private equity firms, have poured billions of dollars into the market, viewing music royalties as a kind of safe commodity — an investment, somewhat like real estate, with predictable rates of return and relatively low risk.

包括私募股權公司在內的新投資者，已經向這個市場投入數十億美元，他們將音樂版稅視為一種安全商品，有點像投資房地產，投資報酬率在意料中且風險相對較低。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6017972