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每日英語跟讀 Ep.960: As Traffic Signals Change, Some See a Token Gesture

 

At one of the most prominent street crossings in Mumbai, the little people in the signal lights have swapped their straight-legged trousers for triangular frocks.

在孟買極著名的一個十字路口，號誌燈內的小人已將直筒長褲換成三角形連身裙。

The city, India’s largest, last month installed 240 pedestrian signals that replaced male stick figures with female silhouettes along a stretch of road in the Dadar neighborhood. Mumbai is the first city in the country to install such signals, and officials say the initiative represents a commitment to empower women.

這座印度最大城市上個月在達德社區一段道路上，安裝了240個以女性身影取代男性人形圖案的行人號誌燈。孟買是印度第一個安裝此類燈號的城市。官員們表示，此案代表對女性賦權的承諾。

The government “is ensuring gender equality with a simple idea — the signals now have women, too,” wrote Aaditya Thackeray, the tourism and environment minister for Maharashtra state, of which Mumbai is the capital.

馬哈拉施特拉省旅遊環境部長薩克雷說，政府「用一個簡單的點子來確保性別平等，現在號誌燈內也有女性了」。孟買為該省首府。

But critics called the move a superficial token that would do little to fix entrenched issues of gender inequality in India. While women have occupied powerful positions in the country — Indira Gandhi became India’s first female prime minister — instances of high-profile violence against women in public have left many reluctant to leave home unaccompanied after dark. And domestic abuse and sexual assault are the most common crimes against women and girls, according to government statistics.

但批評者說，此舉只是表面功夫，無助於解決印度根深蒂固的性別不平等問題。儘管女性在印度先後出任過一些要職，甘地夫人即曾為印度首位女總理，但引人注目的一些公然對女性施暴的案例，卻讓許多婦女不願在天黑後獨自出門。據政府統計，家庭暴力與性侵是針對婦人和女孩的最常見罪行。

Women in India also face obstacles in education and employment. For every 100 boys in the country, only 73 girls are enrolled in secondary schools, according to government statistics. And women work fewer paid hours than men, bearing the brunt of unpaid domestic labor.

印度女性在教育與就業上也面對障礙。據政府統計，全國就讀中學的女孩，人數僅及男孩的七成三。女性必須承擔無償家務勞動，帶薪工時少於男性。

來自班加羅爾的32歲城市規劃師普佳．沙斯崔說：「這是個象徵姿態，但很俗氣。這些人形圖案一點也沒讓我們在路上感到更安全。」

“It’s a gesture, but a tacky one,” said Pooja Sastry, a 32-year-old urban planner from Bangalore. “Those stick figures don’t make us feel any safer on the road.”“It means nothing for the average Indian woman, or a female construction worker crossing the road for her daily wage job,” she added. “The crime rate isn’t going to come down. Domestic violence isn’t going to come down.”

她並補充道：「對一般印度女性，或是一個過街去賺取日薪的建築女工來說，這毫無意義。犯罪率不會下降。家庭暴力不會減少。」

A brutal gang rape on a Delhi bus in 2012 shook the country, setting off protests and discussions of women’s safety in cities. It also led to stricter punishment for crimes against women, including the death penalty for rape.

2012年，德里一輛公車上發生的一起殘忍輪暴案震驚全國，在各城市引發抗議以及有關女性安全的討論。對侵害女性罪行的懲罰也因而加重，包括強暴者可判處死刑。

But sexual assault, harassment and domestic violence have remained persistent. The country — which was found to be the most dangerous place for women when it comes to sexual violence and harassment, according to a 2018 Thomson Reuters Foundation poll of 550 global experts — reported 33,356 rapes and 89,097 assaults against women that year, according to government statistics.

然而性侵害、性騷擾和家庭暴力卻依然如故。湯森路透基金會2018年調查550位全球專家的意見後發現，就性暴力和性騷擾而言，印度是對女性最危險的地方。據政府統計，那一年印度發生33,356起強暴案及89,097起針對女性的侵犯事件。

When Thackeray tried in January to introduce more night cafes and 24-hour gyms and movie theaters in Mumbai in an attempt to add vitality to city life, his political rivals from the Bharatiya Janata Party opposed the plan because they said it would make women more vulnerable to rape.

今年1月，薩克雷試圖為孟買引進更多夜間咖啡館、24小時健身房和電影院，以之為城市生活增添活力，計畫卻遭到屬於印度人民黨的政治對手們反對，理由是這會使女性更容易遭受性侵。

Source article: https://paper.udn.com/udnpaper/POH0067/357470/web/#2L-17866414L

 

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Welcome to 15mins.today the home of English Shadowing. I am your host Gavin and this is In-Tense Episode 64. Welcome guys, so today is going to be a very quick one. Last week we did adverbs and we looked at adverbs and what do they do? They describe verbs that is their job, adjectives describe nouns and adverbs describe verbs.

Unfortunately it's not that simple. It never is with English grammar, so little did I know that adverbs also describe adjectives. Ah, yeah, so we're going to do a quick one and we're going to do some examples, and that's going to be it. So, it is something to the effect. Let me look for an example. I promise you, for this one I will have to look online myself because when I did grammar at school, they never taught me this one. We just did adverbs as describing verbs.

OK, let's go, the example I have is: “Sam had an unbelievably huge appetite for chicken.” So, the unbelievably you recognize the adverbthere, it's got the ly and then huge is actually an adjective describing his appetite, the appetite is the noun. So, what I will do for this is I will go online. I will Google “adverbs that describe, adverbs, oops > adjectives.” So, see I'm losing my mind myself and I will use those examples to do the questions. So, is this an odd one, yeah, I wouldn't worry about this so much. I mean if I was doing this in a test, I would probably fail this part. I would like. Yeah, well, unbelievably OK. That looks like an adverb, I would say to myself, but you know what? Let's just do the examples and hopefully we can find the ly and again, repeat, repeat, repeat, follow the grammar of the question. OK, let's get started.

 

Drill sentences:

Is Joanne very sleepy? Yes, she is very sleepy.

Is Joanne very sleepy? No, she is not very sleepy.

 

Did the incredibly happy boy smile? Yes, the incredibly happy boy smiled.

Did the incredibly happy boy smile? No, the incredibly happy boy did not smile.

 

Is the answer completely wrong? Yes, the answer is completely wrong.

Is the answer completely wrong? No, the answer is not completely wrong.

 

Is it an amazingly beautiful place? Yes, it is an amazingly beautiful place.

Is it an amazingly beautiful place? No, it is not an amazingly beautiful place.

 

Was it strangely quiet? Yes, it was strangely quiet.

Was it strangely quiet? No, it was not strangely quiet.

 

Is the company highly profitable? Yes, it is highly profitable.

Is the company highly profitable? No, it is not highly profitable.

 

Is the snake extremely dangerous? Yes, it is extremely dangerous.

Is the snake extremely dangerous? No, it is not extremely dangerous.

 

Was the answer definitely wrong? Yes, it was definitely wrong.

Was the answer definitely wrong? No, it was not definitely wrong.

 

Was John's report unsurprisingly good? Yes, his report was, unsurprisingly, good.

Was John's report unsurprisingly good? No, it was not, unsurprisingly good.

 

Is Peter dreadfully tired? Yes, he is dreadfully tired.

Is Peter dreadfully tired? No, he is not dreadfully tired.

 

Are you terribly upset? Yes, I am terribly upset.

Are you terribly upset? No, I am not terribly upset.

 

Is Lucy quite happy? Yes, she is quite happy

is Lucy quite happy? No, she is not quite happy.

 

Well there you go guys, I'm gonna stop there. I'm getting a headache from trying to think of these things. So I searched as I said on Google for examples and if you search then you go look at images. I bet you will find those words that I just used. So for your reference I actually found a little list of words that are commonly adverbs, and they are the following: too, as in too, extremely, dangerously, completely, dreadfully, very, intirely, definitely, unsurprisingly, suddenly, quite, unusually, especially, terribly, and dreadfully. Well, so there you go.

There's a list of common adverbs that describe adjectives. I hope that helps you, as I said, this is something that would drive me up the wall if I had to find them. The only hope you have is that little ly, and sometimes that does not appear. You will see in some other examples there's one like quite, “I'm quite happy.” That does not have at ly, so it's difficult. OK, so just follow the grammar, answer your questions accordingly. If someone says, “Are you terribly tired?” You just say, “Yes, I am terribly tired.” or “No, I am not terribly tired.” Don't worry about that so much. I hope that was helpful. Practice, practice, practice and I will catch you in the next episode. Bye.

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Summary:

This article discusses the negative saving rate in Japan and how a lack of increases has led to this shift. People are not able to save and live from hand to mouth monthly. This is a huge shift in the culture and poses a huge problem for the government. They need spending, but also saving for when people retire.

原文章討論: https://www.15mins.today/blog/ep-920-saving-is-out-of-style-in-japan

 

Vocabulary and Sample Sentences

Budge v.: to move slightly, change an opinion

Did the stock price budge after the scandal?

Did his opinion of the movie budge after he read its review? 

 

Hoard v.: to collect and keep large amounts of something

Did she hoard lots of toilet paper?

Would you like to hoard some cash? 

 

Void n.: large empty space

Do children fill a void in people’s lives?

Is there a void of savings in Japan at present? 

 

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.959: Century-old Buddhist statue vandalized

 

Local guide Yang Wei-jen was very upset when he discovered that someone had maliciously scratched a century-old Buddhist statue on the Jhueilu Old Road trail in Taroko National Park. In a post on his Facebook timeline, Yang said that when he was guiding a group of hikers along the trail on Aug. 24, he noticed numerous conspicuous scratches on the face of the Guanyin bodhisattva statue and took photos on the spot to record the damage. Yang said that he did not understand why anyone would damage a holy statue that has been protecting Taiwan for more than a century. Were they not afraid of suffering bad karma? Yang urged the public to take proper care of historic artifacts.

太魯閣國家公園錐麓古道上，一座百年石雕佛像被發現疑遭民眾惡意刮花，讓當地嚮導楊偉仁非常難過。他在臉書貼文指出，八月二十四日帶隊攀登錐麓古道時，發現一座觀世音菩薩像臉部被明顯刮花，趕緊拍照記錄。楊偉仁說他不懂為何有人會破壞守護台灣百年以上的神像，難道不怕有報應？呼籲民眾應該好好保護歷史文物。

Interviewed by reporters the next day, Yang said that the damaged Guanyin bodhisattva is in an out-of-the-way location with no surveillance cameras along the way, so it would be hard to catch the culprit. He suggested that the park headquarters install a protective acrylic screen, or else move the century-old Buddhist statue to the visitor center at the foot of the mountains. He suggested setting up a Hehuan historic mountain trail memorial hall where historically valuable artifacts could all be looked after in one place.

楊偉仁次日受訪時指出，被破壞的觀世音菩薩像位處偏僻，沿途沒有攝影機，要抓到肇事者有難度。他建議管理單位可以加裝壓克力板保護，或將百年佛像移到山下的遊客中心管理，成立合歡越嶺古道紀念館，統一管理具歷史價值的文物。

The Taroko National Park Headquarters said that park rangers and officers of the Seventh Special Police Corps’ Ninth Division had gone into the mountains to investigate, and that they had confirmed that the stone Buddhist statue in the second tunnel of the Jhueilu Old Road trail did indeed show signs of having been scribbled upon. The park headquarters said that at this stage it would figure out how to repair the statue and reinforce area patrols.

太魯閣國家公園管理處指出，經保育巡查員、保七總隊第九大隊員警上山查勘，證實錐麓古道第二隧道內的石雕佛像確實有被塗畫痕跡，現階段先設法復原，並派員加強巡查。

The park headquarters said that the carved stone Buddhist statue, which is about 60cm tall, was left where it now stands when the Jhueilu Old Road trail was repaired between 1914 and 1915, making the statue more than 100 years old. Many people stop to worship the Buddhist statue when they walk past it. The park headquarters is deeply distressed and puzzled about this apparent vandalism, and if the culprit is found, he or she will be fined NT$3,000 (US$102) in accordance with the activities prohibited by the National Park Act.

太管處指出，這個約六十公分高的石雕佛像是西元一九一四至一九一五年間修復錐麓古道期間所留下，距今有超過百年歷史。許多民眾行經佛像都會虔誠膜拜，對於這次遭塗鴉的行為深感遺憾也不解，若查獲將依《國家公園法》公告禁止事項裁罰新台幣三千元(約一○二美元)。

Source article: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2020/09/08/2003742973

 

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.958: As the Pandemic Forced Layoffs, CEOs Gave Up Little

 

When the pandemic prompted companies to furlough or lay off thousands of employees, some chief executives decided to show solidarity by forgoing some of their pay.

新冠肺炎疫情使企業界強制數以千計員工放無薪假或予以資遣之際，一些執行長也決定削減薪酬以共體時艱。

But it turns out that their sacrifice was minimal.

不過，事實證明，他們的犧牲只是九牛一毛。

A survey of some 3,000 public companies shows that the cuts — which, so far, have come in the form of salary reductions — were tiny compared with their total pay last year. Total pay includes things like bonuses and stock awards that typically make up the bulk of what corporate bosses take home.

一分針對約3000家美國上市公司的調查顯示，執行長削減薪酬的幅度與去年總薪酬相比，微不足道。到目前為止，削減薪酬皆採減薪的方式。薪酬還包括獎金和股票獎勵之類，這往往是執行長主要的實得收入。

Only a small percentage of the companies cut salaries for their senior executives at all, which is surprising given that the pandemic has crushed profits and sales for many companies, forcing large layoffs. But even among businesses that did cut the boss’s pay, two-thirds of the chief executives took reductions that were equivalent to only 10% or less of their 2019 compensation, according to an analysis by CGLytics, a compensation analysis firm.

只有小部分企業削減執行長的薪水，這在疫情導致許多公司營收和利潤劇減、被迫大裁員之際令人驚訝。不過，根據薪酬分析公司CGLytics的分析，就算在確實遭減薪的執行長中，多達三分之二削減的金額頂多只占2019年薪酬的10%。

Companies in this group include The Walt Disney Co., Delta Air Lines, United Airlines and Marriott International. All of those businesses have laid off or furloughed employees or pressed workers to take pay cuts.

削減執行長薪酬的公司包括迪士尼、達美航空、聯合航空與萬豪國際集團。這些公司不是資遣員工，就是放他們無薪假，或逼他們接受減薪。

This compensation analysis offers another example of how the coronavirus pandemic has walloped the working and middle classes while mostly sparing the people at the very top of the economic hierarchy.

這分薪酬分析資料再度展現，新冠肺炎疫情重創勞動和中產階級，卻大體放過了經濟體系頂層的人。

“These salary cuts were more window dressing than anything else,” said Liz Shuler, secretary-treasurer of the AFL-CIO.

The labor federation released a report showing that companies in the S&P 500 stock index last year paid chief executives on average 264 times as much as median employees, down from 287 times in 2018.

美國最大工會組織「美國勞工聯盟及工會組織」財務長麗茲．舒勒說：「這些人減薪不過是做做樣子。」該組織公布的報告顯示，名列標準普爾500指數的公司，去年給執行長的薪酬平均是中位數員工的264倍，比2018年的287倍下降。

Of course, this analysis is incomplete because the year is not over. In the coming months, corporate boards could decide to significantly reduce the bonuses and stock options they hand out to top executives for 2020. That would represent a big break from recent years when boards, which are primarily made up of corporate executives and investors, approved ever higher pay packages.

這個分析當然還不完整，因為今年還沒結束。未來數月，各家企業董事會可能決定，2020年大幅減少給執行長的獎金和股票選擇權，這將與近年來董事會的作法大相逕庭，主要由企業高層和投資人組成的董事會，最近幾年同意給執行長更高的薪酬不斷提高。

A few chief executives have already taken a sizable hit. The survey showed that Glenn Kelman, chief executive of Redfin, a Seattle-based real estate brokerage, took a pay cut that was equivalent to the $284,000 he got in 2019.

少數執行長薪酬已大減。這分調查顯示，總部設在西雅圖的房仲公司Redfin執行長凱爾曼，今年減薪28萬4000美元，相當於他去年薪酬總額。

“The reason we did it is because we had to furlough or lay off more than a thousand people,” Kelman said when asked what motivated the decision to withhold his salary. “It’s not just about the pay cut; it’s about the general sense that capitalism is not working for everyone.”

凱爾曼被問到減薪的理由時回答：「我們這樣做，是因為必須強迫一千多名員工放無薪假或將他們解雇。這件事不只關乎我個人減薪，更是為了照顧員工普遍感受，就是資本主義並非對每個人都適用。」

CGLytics surveyed the companies in the Russell 3000 index, which comprises most of the publicly traded businesses in the United States, and found that 419 companies had disclosed details of salary cuts.

CGLytics調查了涵蓋美國大多數上市公司的「羅素3000指數」公司，發現其中419家公布了減薪的詳細資訊。

Source article: https://paper.udn.com/udnpaper/POH0067/356435/web/

 

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.957: How American Guns Are Fueling U.K. Crime

 

Josh Bains was 28 when he was killed after an argument over a drug debt of about $50 just a few miles from the English village where he grew up — with a gun that had traveled thousands of miles from America.

貝恩斯因為欠下約50美元買毒債與人起爭執後遇害，年僅28歲，遇害處離他成長的英格蘭村落只有幾哩，奪命的槍枝卻遠從數千哩外的美國而來。

His was one of a rising number of gun deaths in recent years that have British authorities worried about an expanding smuggling pipeline from the United States. The gun used to kill Bains in October 2018 — a Taurus Model 85 — is banned outright in Britain.

英國近年來像貝恩斯這樣的槍擊案死者愈來愈多，令當局對英美之間走私網日漸擴大感到憂慮。2018年10月用來殺害貝恩斯的這支金牛座M85左輪手槍，在英國完全禁用。

“I think Americans wouldn’t believe that something that they produce could affect people like us,” said Clare Bains, who was Bains’ stepmother. “If there weren’t all these guns, they wouldn’t be seeping out of America all over the world.”

貝恩斯的繼母克萊兒說：「美國人不會相信，他們製造的東西竟會影響到我們這樣的人。要是沒有這麼多槍，就不會流出美國，跑到世界各地。」

Gun deaths remain extremely rare in Britain, and very few people, even police officers, carry firearms. But the growing presence of U.S. weapons on the streets, which has not previously been widely reported, comes as serious violent crime, like murders and stabbings, has risen sharply.

英國死於槍擊案者極少，而且少有人攜帶槍械，包括警察，不過美國武器在英國街頭愈來愈常見，這種現象先前未獲廣泛報導，同時，謀殺和持刀傷人等嚴重暴力罪案亦遽增。

Most illegal firearms in Britain still come from Europe. But investigators seized hundreds of smuggled U.S. guns last year, a small figure by international standards, though experts say the number that police do not discover is likely to be far higher.

英國非法槍枝多數仍來自歐陸，不過去年調查人員查扣數以百計走私入境的美國槍枝，以國際標準而言算少，但專家指出未查獲的可能遠多於此。

British police have traced some of the smuggled U.S. guns back to loosely regulated gun fairs in states like Florida. Investigators have also seized U.S. weapons being smuggled on a container ship and hidden in car engines.

英國警方查出，走私的美國槍枝部分來自佛州等地管理鬆散的槍械展，調查人員還沒收了藉貨櫃船走私和藏在汽車引擎中的美國武器。

Now authorities fear that after Brexit, when borders with the European Union will be more tightly regulated, the illegal gun trade from the United States could accelerate, especially given the Trump administration’s broad support for the gun industry.

現在英國當局擔心，英國脫離歐盟導致英歐邊界管制收緊之後，來自美國的私槍會大增，在川普政府力挺槍枝產業的背景下，尤其如此。

“A major Trump administration goal is to globalize the firearms trade and facilitate exports, and if you’re facilitating legal exports, it’s almost inevitable that there will be an illegal diversion of weapons into criminal markets in other countries,” said Aaron Karp, a senior consultant for the Small Arms Survey in Geneva and a lecturer at Old Dominion University in Virginia.

瑞士日內瓦「小型武器調查」研究計畫高級顧問、美國維吉尼亞州老道明大學講師卡普說：「川普政府一大目標是，使槍枝貿易全球化並促進槍枝出口，而如果美國推動合法槍枝出口，難免會有部分非法武器流入他國的犯罪市場。」

The United States is one of the biggest legal exporters of firearms in the world, but hundreds of thousands of guns also illegally leak out of the country and fuel homicides, especially in Latin America and the Caribbean.

美國是最大合法槍枝出口國之一，卻有數以十萬計槍枝非法流出並助長殺人案，尤其在拉丁美洲和加勒比海地區。

In Britain, criminal groups primarily use knives for acts of violence. Knife crime reached a record high last year, accounting for around 2 out of every 5 killings. By comparison, only 33 people were killed with a gun.

在英國，犯罪團體主要持刀行凶，去年持刀所犯刑案創新高，約占殺人案五分之二，相較之下，只有33人死於槍擊。

But the number of illegal guns in circulation is growing. In the last year alone, gun seizures by Britain’s national policing body, the National Crime Agency, more than doubled, and firearm offenses have soared by 38% since 2015.

然而，流通的非法槍枝不斷增加。單是這一年來，英國國家治安機關「國家刑事局」查扣的槍枝就比先前多出一倍以上，而且從2015年以來，槍枝犯罪激增了38%。

Source article: https://paper.udn.com/udnpaper/POH0067/356788/web/

 

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.956: Unattractive Japanese man reveals secret to dating beautiful women

 

日本一位41歲男子近期在網路上爆紅，原因是他靠著平凡無奇的長相在交友軟體上成功約到許多美女，更創下一年與300多位女性約會記錄。

A 41-year-old middle-aged man recently became an Internet sensation for his below-average look but impressive way of dating pretty women on dating apps. According to the Japanese man, nicknamed Hiraten, he can go out with up to 300 girls a year even without looking attractive.

這為名為平手的大叔在自己的網站上透露自己在國中時就發現長得比別人不好看，到高中時女友也劈腿，找的對象又比自己帥，讓他深受打擊。

Hiraten revealed on his website that he first realized he wasn’t handsome in junior high. Soon after, he dated a girl in high school who eventually cheated on him with a more handsome guy, traumatizing him forever.

這逐漸地讓他開始退縮並對女性產生反感，爾後也開始失去自信。

This has led him to become shy and distrusting women. He gradually lacked confidence in himself too.

據報導，他最後終於在30歲一場大病後決定改變自己的態度，重新找回自己。

According to various reports, he eventually decided on a change of attitude on his 30th birthday after his health took a bad turn.

他在手機上下載了10個交友軟體，而平均一個週末甚至可以約6到8位女生出去玩。

He downloaded 10 dating apps on his phone and started going out with 6 to 8 girls on the weekends.

他一年下來與近300多位女性約會，其中許多還是20幾歲的漂亮小姐，許多人表示好奇他到底如何靠著普普的長相吸引到這麼多女生。

As he was able to date nearly 300 girls in one year, with some being 20-year-old beauties, many wondered how, given his less-than-extraordinary looks.

平手表示若要在交友軟體上被注意，首先需要放一張全身照。這張照片需要讓大家看得到你的身材，照片也要自然、開朗。

Hiraten revealed that to attract women’s attention on dating apps, one must first have a full-sized photo, where your physique is visible. The photo also needs to look natural and entertaining.

第二，平手建議下載沒有按讚上限的交友軟體。原因是，若你在短時間內經常登入，有更高的機會你會得到讚和其他人的回應。

Next, Hiraten suggested downloading apps that won’t put a cap on the number of likes you get. In this way, if you log in to the app more frequently, there’s a higher chance of getting noticed.

最後，平手表示要特別注意沒有放大頭照的女生。如果女生沒有照片還獲得你的「喜歡」，那麼他們通常都會至少基於好奇主動聯繫你。

Last but not least, Hiraten said you should always look out for girls who don’t have profile pictures on them. If she receives a “like” with no picture, she’ll be intrigued and will be more likely to respond to you.

Source article: https://chinapost.nownews.com/20200916-1792935

 

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.955: About Singapore- Video of Singapore officer snapping back angry man’s mask goes viral

 

近期，一個新加坡警員在緩解兩名男子的爭執影片意外在社群媒體上爆紅，原因全歸於警員當下突然伸出手「矯正」了男子的口罩戴法。

A video of a Singaporean officer’s intervention between two men has gone viral after the short clip showed the officer reaching out to adjust one of the man’s face masks mid-argument.

此事件發生於週日小印度區的竹腳中心(Tekka Centre)，警方也立刻被叫到現場解決紛爭。

The public altercation, which took place at Tekka Centre on Sunday, involved several officers who immediately appeared to break up the fight.

影片中，其中一名男子被兩位警員拉到一旁，便氣憤地手舞足道解釋經過；然而，爭辯全程，男子的口罩卻只遮住自己的下巴，毫無防疫作用。

In a clip posted to Facebook, one of the men was taken aside by an officer while heatedly explaining the situation — all the while, with his mask under his chin.

情緒激昂的男子講到一半時，其中一名警員突然伸出手將男子的口罩拉長彈回他的臉上，讓男子當場愣住。

Suddenly, one of the officers reached out and flicked the mask onto the man’s face mid-tirade, startling him into a brief silence.

事件爆發後，網友紛紛到影片下方留言大讚員警的勇敢舉動，稱讚其在解決紛爭中不忘防疫的重要性。

The incident greatly amused social media users who took to the comment section to praise the officer for his bravery and no-nonsense attitude.

根據當地媒體報導，此事件已被解決。

According to Singapore media, the altercation was quickly resolved and no further assistance was required.

 

Next Article:

 

星國健身控竟在「這」運動　網友傻眼：活得不耐煩？ | Singapore fitness group raises questions for hogging parking spaces to exercise

近日，網上瘋傳新加坡熱愛健身的團體於福康寧公園(Fort Canning Park)停車場內運動的影片，畫面曝光後立即遭網友譴責。

A Singaporean fitness group was condemned online after a video showing them working out in the middle of a parking lot at Fort Canning Park went viral.

一位駕駛員於週三轉進停車場時看到此驚人畫面，將行車紀錄器畫面分享到臉書團體SG Road Vigilante。

The workout session was captured on a dashcam of a startled driver and shared on the Facebook group, SG Road Vigilante on Wednesday.

影片中可見大家分散在停車場各處，一人佔用一個停車格運動，甚至有人躺平在地上採空中腳踏車。

According to the video, the group members were spread out with each person occupying a parking space to do a variety of exercises, including bicycle crunches.

不僅如此，還有一位「教練」在現場督促大家運動和檢視其姿勢是否正確。

A “coach” was also present, supervising the fitness enthusiasts.

影片曝光後許多網友也紛紛留言表示困惑，並補充隔壁就是公園，為何大家不直接在公園內運動？同時，也有人大大讚賞運動團和新加坡人的創意。

Social media users voiced their confusion and undeniable admirability for the group’s inventiveness, with one commenting: “And I thought I have seen it all. Never disappointed with Singaporean creativity”.

然而，當地新加坡媒體報導，根據星國的《停車場法令》(Parking Places Act)，沒有正當理由者不宜在停車場內逗留。

However, local Singapore media reported that according to the Parking Places Act, no person, who’s not there with legitimate business should loiter in a parking place.

截至發稿時間，尚不清楚該團體是否因阻礙交通而遭罰。

At the time of press, it’s unclear if the group was fined for the obstruction of parking places.

Source article: https://chinapost.nownews.com/20200910-1760025 ; https://chinapost.nownews.com/20200911-1764761

 

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Summary

A study funded by NASA is putting people in a domeshaped building on a Hawaii volcano for eight months that mimicks a stay on the surface of Mars. This simulation is to examine how well people can work and live together, entirely separated from civilization. The 2030 Mars mission with astronauts will consist of a six-month journey to Mars, then 500 days of stay, and another six-month return trip. NASA does not intend to put people on this mission without understanding the psychological consequences. A mock Mars mission of 520 days showed the people developed sleep disorders and became less productive. The six crew members selected are able to email with a 20minute delay, check their bank accounts, and browse limited websites. Crew members will perform a variety of work that mimics astronauts, including excursions in spacesuits.

 

原文討論: https://www.15mins.today/blog/ep-918-living-in-hawaii-aiming-for-mars

 

 

Vocabulary and sample sentences:

 

Last-minute adj. – last possible time before the event

The crew members picked up last-minute things before entering the dome.

Please wait for me at the restaurant, I am busy with a last-minute customer at the moment. 

 

Escalate v. – become more intense or increase rapidly

Personal conflicts that can escalate over months could be bad for the Mars mission.

BLM escalated after the death of George Floyd. 

 

Worst-case adj. – the worst possible outcome

NASA is creating a mock environment that simulates the worst-cast scenario.

The worst-case scenario of a computer crash is the loss of data. 

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.954: Woolly mammoth skeleton found in lake in Russia’s Arctic

 

Russian scientists are poring over the stunningly well-preserved bones of an adult woolly mammoth that roamed the Earth at least 10,000 years ago, after local inhabitants discovered its remains in the shallows of a north Siberian lake.

俄國科學家近日埋首挖掘一頭真猛瑪象的成象骸骨，其保存狀況良好得讓人吃驚。遠在一萬年前，這頭真猛瑪象曾經漫步於地球上，而這次出土的骨骸是當地居民在西伯利亞北部一座湖邊的淺灘所發現。

Part of its skull, several ribs and foreleg bones, some with soft tissue still attached to them, were retrieved from Russia’s remote Yamal peninsula above the Arctic Circle on July 23. Scientists are still searching the site for other bones.

這隻真猛瑪象的部分頭蓋骨、數根肋骨和前腿骨，在七月二十三日出土於俄羅斯位於北極圈內偏遠的亞馬爾半島，其中一些骸骨仍有軟組織附著在上面。科學家目前仍然在該地持續搜尋其他骸骨。

Similar finds in Russia’s vast Siberian region have happened with increasing regularity as climate change warming the Arctic at a faster pace than the rest of the world has thawed the ground in some areas long locked in permafrost.

在俄羅斯廣闊的西伯利亞地區，類似的考古發現愈趨頻繁，這是因為氣候變遷暖化北極圈的速度，比世界其他地方還來得快。某些長久以來鎖在永凍土層的地區，地面已經解凍。

Scientists circulated images in December of a prehistoric puppy, thought to be 18,000 years old, that was found in the permafrost region of Russia’s Far East in 2018.

去年十二月，科學家間流傳著一隻史前時代幼犬的照片，是二○一八年在俄羅斯遠東地區的永凍土區域發現的，推測年代為一萬八千年前。

The mammoth remains are at least 10,000 years old, although researchers don’t yet know exactly when it walked the earth or how old it was when it died, said Dmitry Frolov, director of the Scientific Centre for Arctic studies. Researchers have found mammoth fossils dating from up to 30,000 years ago in Russia, he said.

俄羅斯北極研究中心主任狄米崔‧伏羅洛夫表示，雖然研究人員還不知道這隻猛瑪象漫步在地球上的確切時代，或是牠過世的年紀，但是這具遺骸起碼有一萬年的歷史。他說，研究人員曾經在俄羅斯發現過可追溯到三萬年前的猛瑪象化石。

Yevgeniya Khozyainova, a scientist from a local museum, said it was unusual to find so many bones belonging to a single species and to know where they came from. “Of course, we’d like to find the remaining parts, to understand how complete a find it is. Whenever there is soft tissue left behind, it is valuable material to study,” she said.

當地博物館的科學家葉芙金妮雅‧霍奇艾諾娃指出，能夠發現許多同屬於單一物種的骨頭是相當少見的，也不容易知道它們來自何處。她說：「當然，我們希望能找到剩下的部位，想要了解這次發現的完整程度。只要有軟組織殘留下來，都會是珍貴的研究材料。」

Source article: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2020/08/02/2003740962

 

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