通勤學英語 15Mins Today

【職場英文即戰力- 從聽懂關鍵字到完勝簡報】- 台科大副教授黃玟君老師

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.901: About SKorea -A taste of democracy: South Korea’s 16-year fight for a green onion breakfast cereal

It is being hailed as a major win for democracy in South Korea.

它被譽為南韓民主的重大勝利。

The limited edition of the Chex cereal sold out within two days when it hit online stores, following years of almost ceaseless campaigning by enthusiasts.

在愛好者幾乎多年不停奮戰後，限量版「格格脆」穀片於網路商店上市時，2天內售罄。

The long road to the cereal aisle began in 2004 when Kellogg’s Korea launched a light-hearted marketing campaign for Chex, a five-grain cereal, asking South Koreans to vote on a new flavour.

這條前往穀片貨架通道的漫漫長路始於2004年，當時南韓家樂氏為5種穀類的「格格脆」穀片展開一場輕鬆的行銷活動，請南韓人投票選新口味。

The PR stunt was meant to end in an easy victory for sweet Cheki. But the people did not agree.

這個宣傳噱頭本來打算讓甜的「雀奇」輕取，但民眾並不同意。

Votes for Chaka surged past those for Cheki, catching Kellogg’s unawares. Citing multiple votes by individuals, the company halted online voting, threw out duplicate votes and declared Cheki the winner.

投給「雀卡」的票大幅超越「雀奇」，讓家樂氏措手不及。這家公司當時指有人重複投票，停止網路投票、排除重複選票，然後宣告「雀奇」是贏家。

Chaka fans cried foul, and decried Cheki’s subsequent 16-year rule as that of an illegitimate tyrant.

「雀卡」的粉絲抱怨連連，譴責「雀奇」後續16年的統治是非法暴君。

Chaka’s success was so momentous that on the day it was announced earlier this month it surged past North Korea’s bombing of an inter-Korean liaison office to become the top trending topic on South Korean social media.

「雀卡」的成功如此重大，以至於本月稍早宣布的那一天，消息還蓋過北韓炸毀南北共同聯絡事務所一事，成為南韓社群媒體的熱門話題第一名。

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Park’s death expected to heat up 2021 by-elections 朴元淳去世料將使2021年補選升溫

The National Election Commission will run by-elections on April 7, 2021 to replace lawmakers and local governors if their seats have remained empty from March 17 this year to March 8, 2021.

南韓中央選舉管理委員會將於2021年4月7日舉行多項補選，如果國會議員和地方首長的職位自今年3月17日至2021年3月8日一直出缺，將會進行補選。

Under the Election Law, elected officials are removed from their position if they receive a sentence of a higher than 1 million won fine for violation of the laws on election and political funding, or one year imprisonment.

根據南韓「選舉法」，若民選官員因違反選舉與政治獻金相關法律，被處以高於100萬韓元的罰款，或1年有期徒刑，就會被免職。

"The 2021 by-elections certainly can be comparable to regular local elections, as new Seoul and Busan mayors will be elected," said Shin Yul, a political science professor at Myongji University.

南韓明知大學政治學教授申律說，「2021年的補選，當然能拿來和定期的地方選舉相提並論，因為將選出新任的首爾及釜山市長」。

Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1385819 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1384079

 

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「John老師推薦這門課給需要英語簡報即戰力的通勤家族。要在職場抓住機會，簡報會是你最好的武器！要簡報的夠到位，必須掌握黃老師課程內的簡報慣用句！」

【職場英文即戰力- 從聽懂關鍵字到完勝簡報】- 台科大副教授黃玟君老師

課程購買連結：http://go.sat.cool/RTJDM7/21 - 7/25 限時優惠，通勤家族$300元折扣碼：15mins

課程特色：帶你訓練英語耳 掌握英文發音及讀音原則，學會判斷英文關鍵字的出現時機！完整英文簡報架構+超過500句道地簡報慣用語，靈活替換，隨時開口不緊張！集結 20 年完整教學經驗！針對亞洲學生設計的有效學習方式！

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.900: About India - ’Honk more, wait more’： Mumbai tests traffic lights that reward the patient driver

There is a truth universally acknowledged by drivers in India： honk your horn loud enough and the traffic lights will surely change to green.

印度駕駛人都曉得一個道理：只要喇叭按得夠響，交通號誌絕對會變綠燈。

But, fed up with impatient drivers inflicting a deafening roar every time they are forced to stop, police in Mumbai have come up with a new system to punish those who cannot wait at traffic lights in silence.

然而，孟買警方受夠駕駛人每次被迫停車，就會出現震耳欲聾的喇叭聲，因而設計出一套新系統，來懲罰不能安靜等待號誌轉換的駕駛人。

The new system was quite simple： "Honk more, wait more."

新系統相當簡單易懂：「你愈叭，等愈久。」

Mumbai police installed a rigged traffic light system to tackle the problem of "reckless honkers", which resets the red traffic signal every time the sound of car horns goes above 85 decibels. For particularly honk-happy drivers, it could mean a very long wait at the lights.

孟買警方安裝一套經過改造的交通號誌系統，來處理「莽撞喇叭狂」問題；只要偵測到85分貝以上的汽車喇叭聲，紅燈就會從頭開始。對於不按不爽的駕駛人，可能得在交通號誌下等到天荒地老。

Mumbai was ranked as the fourth most congested city in the world, according to the TomTom traffic index, with 65% congestion and drivers spending an average of eight days and 17 hours in traffic each year.

TomTom交通指數報告顯示，孟買被列為全球最壅塞城市第4名，壅塞比率達65％，駕駛人平均每年花費8天17小時塞在路上。

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India returns alleged bird spy to Pakistan／印度把被指控的鳥間諜交還巴基斯坦

Indian police have released a pigeon belonging to a Pakistani fisherman after a probe found that the bird, which had flown across the contentious border between the nuclear-armed nations, was not a spy, two officials said on Friday.

兩名官員週五說，印度警方把一隻屬於巴基斯坦一名漁夫的鴿子放了，在調查發現這隻飛越兩個核武國爭議邊境的鳥並非間諜以後。

The Pakistani owner of the pigeon had urged India to return his bird, which Indian villagers turned over to police after discovering it.

這隻鴿子的巴基斯坦主人催促印度歸還他的鳥，印度村民先前發現了牠以後交給了警方。

“It’s just an innocent bird,” Habibullah, the owner of the bird, who goes by just one name, told Reuters on Friday.

單名的鴿主哈比布拉週五告訴路透，「牠只是一隻無辜的鳥。」

He rejected allegations that the numbers inscribed on a ring on the pigeon’s leg were codes meant for militant groups operating in the disputed region of Kashmir.

對於鴿子腳環上所刻數字乃是在爭議的喀什米爾地區行動的好戰團體代號的指控，他予以駁斥。

Habibullah, who lives in a village near the Kashmir border, one of the most militarised zones in the world, said the bird had participated in a pigeon racing contest and the digits on the bird’s leg were his mobile phone number.

住在全球最軍事化地區之一的喀什米爾邊境附近一處村莊的哈比布拉說，這隻鳥參加了一場賽鴿大賽，牠腳上的數字是他的行動電話號碼。

In 2016, a pigeon was taken into Indian custody after it was found with a note threatening Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.

2016年曾有一隻鴿子被印度扣押，在發現牠有一張威脅印度總理納倫德拉．莫迪的便條以後。

Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1377877 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1383670

 

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.899: Remember the MOOCs? After Near-Death, They’re Booming

Sandeep Gupta, a technology manager in California, sees the economic storm caused by the coronavirus as a time “to try to future-proof your working life.” So he is taking an online course in artificial intelligence.

美國加州科技業經理古普塔認為，新冠肺炎引發的經濟風暴是「防止職業生涯被未來淘汰」的時機，所以修讀了一門關於人工智慧的線上課程。

Dr. Robert Davidson, an emergency-room physician in Michigan, says the pandemic has cast “a glaring light on the shortcomings of our public health infrastructure.” So he is pursuing an online master’s degree in public health.

密西根州急診室醫師戴維森說，疫情「使我們公衛基礎設施的弱點顯而易見」，所以他在修讀線上公衛碩士學位。

Children and college students aren’t the only ones turning to online education during the coronavirus pandemic. Millions of adults have signed up for online classes in the past two months, too — a jolt that could signal a renaissance for big online learning networks that had struggled for years.

在新冠肺炎大流行期間轉而接受線上教育者，不限於兒童和大學生。過去兩個月，數以百萬計的成人也註冊參加線上課程，這令人驚訝的事實可能意味苦撐多年的大型線上學習網路即將再起。

Coursera, in which Gupta and Davidson enrolled, added 10 million new users from mid-March to mid-May, seven times the pace of new sign-ups in the previous year. Enrollments at edX and Udacity, two smaller education sites, have jumped by similar multiples.

古普塔與戴維森註冊的Coursera，從3月中旬到5月中旬增加1000萬新用戶，是去年同期新增註冊人數的七倍。edX與Udacity這兩個規模較小的教育網站，新註冊人數也以類似倍數暴增。

“Crises lead to accelerations, and this is best chance ever for online learning,” said Sebastian Thrun, a co-founder and chairman of Udacity.

Udacity共同創辦人兼董事長史朗說：「危機導致改變加速發生，這是線上學習業未曾遇過的最佳良機。」

Coursera, Udacity and edX sprang up nearly a decade ago as high-profile university experiments known as MOOCs, for massive open online courses. They were portrayed as tech-fueled insurgents destined to disrupt the antiquated ways of traditional higher education. But few people completed courses, grappling with the same challenges now facing students forced into distance learning because of the pandemic. Screen fatigue sets in, and attention strays.

Coursera、Udacity和edX近十年前出現，嘗試與大學合作推出線上課程而備受矚目，這類課程名為「大規模開放線上課程」，簡稱「磨課師」。這種課程被描述為獲得科技支持的反叛者，意在顛覆傳統高等教育過時的授課方式。不過，很少有人能修完課程，這些人窮於應付的挑戰，與目前因為疫情被迫遠距學習的學生一樣。長時間盯著螢幕造成疲勞，而且注意力難以集中。

But the online ventures adapted through trial and error, gathering lessons that could provide a road map for school districts and universities pushed online. The instructional ingredients of success, the sites found, include short videos of six minutes or less, interspersed with interactive drills and tests; online forums where students share problems and suggestions; and online mentoring and tutoring.

不過這些線上企業透過反覆試驗來調整，並且積聚了可供被迫線上授課的學區和大學參考的知識和經驗。這些網站發現，線上授課成功的要素包括：短片時間不超過6分鐘，穿插互動練習和測驗；設立線上論壇，讓學生提出問題和建議；並提供線上指導和輔導。

A few top-tier universities, such as the University of Michigan and the Georgia Institute of Technology, offer some full degree programs through the online platforms.

有幾所頂尖大學，如密西根大學和喬治亞理工學院，透過這些線上平台提供一些正式學位學程。

While those academic programs are available, the online schools have tilted toward skills-focused courses that match student demand and hiring trends.

這些線上學校雖提供學術性學程，卻更傾向開設符合學生需要和雇用趨勢的技能課程。

The COVID-19 effect on online learning could broaden the range of popular subjects, education experts say. But so far, training for the tech economy is where the digital-learning money lies. With more of work and everyday life moving online — some of it permanently — that will probably not change.

教育專家指出，新冠肺炎可能會使線上課程熱門科目範圍變得更廣。不過到目前為止，針對科技經濟提供的訓練課程，才是數位教學業的金雞母。隨著更多的工作和日常生活轉移到線上進行，有些是永遠轉到線上，這種情況大概不會改變。

Source articles: https://paper.udn.com/udnpaper/POH0067/354879/web/

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Welcome to 15mins.today the home of English Shadowing. I'm your host Gavin, and this is InTense Episode 54. Well guys, we are working on adjectives and in the first episode we looked at the first kind, common adjectives and just to recap these are words describe nouns or pronouns. So today we're going to be looking at the second kind of adjective and these are called proper adjectives and they're formed from proper nouns. Now if I remember correctly, we did proper nouns and those always start with a capital, so these are words, sorry, adjectives that are formed from proper nouns! 

So, when we look at an orange, we could say “These are Taiwanese oranges.” Meaning, they come from Taiwan and so that word Taiwanese describes the orange and because the T will be a capital, we know it is an adjective, but it's a proper adjective. So, this is so simple and easy to recognize, they will start with a capital, just like a proper noun, but they are not a noun they will be an adjective, because they will describe the noun, like “German car.” There you go, so these are easy to recognize. So again, as I've said many times, don't stress about whether you can recognize what kind, as long as you know it is an adjective, we will be fine. So, let's look at our examples!

Drill Sentences:

Do you enjoy Mexican food? Yes, I enjoy Mexican food.

Do you enjoy Mexican food? No, I do not enjoy Mexican food.

 

Are German cars expensive? Yes, German cars are expensive.

Are German cars expensive? No, German cars are not expensive.

 

Are Belgium chocolates delicious? Yes, Belgium chocolates are delicious.

Are Belgium chocolates delicious? No, Belgium chocolates are not delicious.

 

Are Taiwanese pineapples sweet? Yes, Taiwanese pineapples are sweet.

Are Taiwanese pineapples sweet? No, Taiwanese pineapples are not sweet.

 

Is Italian leather good? Yes, Italian leather is good.

Is Italian leather good? No, Italian leather is not good.

 

Are Japanese apples expensive? Yes, Japanese apples are expensive.

Are Japanese apples expensive? No, Japanese apples are not expensive.

 

Is Korean music popular? Yes, Korean music is popular.

Is Korean music popular? No, Korean music is not popular.

Well, there you go guys, just a quick one. As I said easy to recognize, so easy to spot, again I hope you find this useful. I will underline the adjectives in the transcript, have a great day and I'll catch you in the next episode, bye bye!

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Summary:

The pandemic in 2020 has changed many aspects of our lives. In Japan, it did not only affect the economy, but also their office processing. Japan, like Taiwan has a culture that require paperwork such as memos be confirmed or checked off with a personal seal/chop. Since the Japanese Minister has called on citizens to stay at home during the pandemic, he asked the government to change the custom of using seals to promote remote work. At the same time, the government require small businesses applying for subsidies to hand in the paperwork in person at unemployment offices, which is in conflict with the Prime Minister’s intentions of promoting remote work. This custom was imported from China from over a thousand years ago, where citizens were required to legally register their name to use on important documents.

原文章討論: https://www.15mins.today/blog/ep-850-japan-taking-another-look-at-ancient-seal-custom-to-push

Vocabulary and Sample Sentences:

Custom n. – a tradition or a widely accepted way of behaving

The local custom dictates that you take off your shoes before entering into other people’s homes.

When in Rome do as Romans do means you should follow the local customs whereever you go.

Formalize v. – give something legal or formal status / give something structure or shape

The use of a seal was formalized by Japan’s modern government in 1800s.

Our business relationship will be formalized through a business contract.

Telecommute n. – work from home through the use of internet or phone

My boss wants me to start telecommuting next week.

You need to check the stability of your internet connection in order to telecommute.

 

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.898: Economic Strain Grows, Hitting Working Mothers

Working during the pandemic has meant very different things for Virginia Dressler and for her husband, Brandon.

對薇吉妮雅·崔斯勒和她的丈夫布蘭登來說，在疫情全球大流行期間工作，有著非常不同的含意。

As he, a delivery driver, continued his routes near their home in Newbury, Ohio, she spent her days caring for their 3-year-old twins. Only after her husband came home at 6 p.m. could she turn to her job as a digital projects librarian at Kent State University, finishing her eight-hour shift from home at about 2 a.m.

當身為送貨司機的丈夫繼續在俄亥俄州紐伯利市的住家附近送貨時，她則在家中照顧三歲的雙胞胎小孩。要到丈夫6點回到家後，她才能開始做她肯特州立大學數位計畫圖書管理員的工作，在家上班，直到凌晨2點左右才結束八小時的輪班工作。

Later, he was furloughed and took over some of the child care responsibilities. But now, with the economy reopening, the prospect of being summoned back to campus fills Virginia Dressler with more anxiety: Day care centers are just starting to reopen, with restrictions, so who will take care of their children?

後來，布蘭登被迫休無薪假並且分擔了一些照顧孩子的責任，但現在隨著經濟活動重新開啟，被召回校園工作的可能性增添了薇吉妮雅·崔斯勒的焦慮，托兒所才剛開始重新營運，又有種種限制，孩子要由誰來照顧呢?

As the pandemic upends work and home life, women have carried an outsize share of the burden, more likely to lose a job and more likely to shoulder the load of closed schools and day care. For many working mothers, the gradual reopening won’t solve their problems but compound them — forcing them out of the labor force or into part-time jobs while increasing their responsibilities at home.

這場全球大流行疾病顛覆了工作與家庭生活，讓婦女們肩負超大的重擔，她們更可能失去工作，也更可能承受學校與托兒所關閉所產生的負擔。對許多職場媽媽而言，經濟活動逐歩重新開啟並不能解決她們的問題，反而讓問題雪上加霜，迫使她們離開勞動市場或從事兼職工作，同時也加重了她們在家中的責任。

The impact could last a lifetime, reducing their earning potential and work opportunities.

這種影響可能會持續一生，減損她們賺取收入的潛力與工作的機會。

“We could have an entire generation of women who are hurt,” Betsey Stevenson, a professor of economics and public policy at the University of Michigan, said of pregnant women and working mothers whose children are too young to manage on their own. “They may spend a significant amount of time out of the workforce, or their careers could just peter out in terms of promotions.”

談到孕婦與孩子太小生活無法自理的職業媽媽，密西根大學經濟學和公共政策教授貝西．史蒂文生說：「我們可能會有整整一個世代的女性受到傷害，她們可能會有很長一段時間脫離職場，或是她們的職涯在升遷方面機會逐漸消失。」

Women who drop out of the workforce to take care of children often have trouble getting back in, and the longer they stay out, the harder it is.

為了照顧小孩而退出職場的女性，往往難以重返職場，而且她們退出的時間愈久，重返職場愈難。

The economic crisis magnifies the downsides. Wage losses are much more severe and enduring when they occur in recessions, and workers who lose jobs now are likely to have less secure employment in the future.

這場經濟危機擴大了不利因素，薪資損失在經濟衰退期間要來得更嚴重和持久，現在失業的勞工將來找到的工作很可能更不牢靠。

Family responsibilities as well as lower wages have always pushed women in and out of the workforce. Women often leave or lose jobs to care for a sick child or aging relative.In countries that offer more comprehensive support for families — like Germany, France, Canada and Sweden — a significantly larger proportion of women are in the labor force.

家庭責任與較低的工資一向都會迫使婦女在勞動市場中進進出出。婦女經常為照顧生病的孩子或年邁的親人而離開或失去工作。在德國、法國、加拿大和瑞典等為家庭提供更全面支持的國家，就業婦女的比率要高得多。

Despite the miserable choices facing many working mothers, several economists retain hopes that the increased pressure on families could — over the long term — force structural and cultural changes that could benefit women: a better child care system, more flexible work arrangements, even a deeper appreciation of the sometimes overwhelming demands of managing a household with children by partners stranded at home for the first time.

儘管許多職場媽媽面臨痛苦的選擇，有幾位經濟學家仍懷抱希望，他們認為從長遠來看，家庭承受的壓力加重，可能會迫使有利於婦女的結構與文化改革出現：更好的托兒制度，更具彈性的工作安排，甚至對困在家中的兩口子要管理好有孩子的家庭時而大到難以承受的壓力，也首度能有更深的體諒。

Source article: https://paper.udn.com/udnpaper/POH0067/354557/web/

 

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.897: ‘More masks than jellyfish’: coronavirus waste ends up in ocean

Conservationists have warned that the coronavirus pandemic could spark a surge in ocean pollution — adding to a glut of plastic waste that already threatens marine life — after finding disposable masks floating like jellyfish and waterlogged latex gloves scattered across seabeds.

自然環境保育人士警告說，冠狀病毒大流行可能造成海洋污染激增──在海底發現像水母般漂浮的拋棄式口罩，以及充滿水的乳膠手套四處散布，讓已對海洋生物造成威脅的巨量塑膠垃圾問題雪上加霜。

The French non-profit Operation Mer Propre (Operation Clean Sea), whose activities include regularly picking up litter along the Cote d’Azur, began sounding the alarm late last month.

定期在蔚藍海岸清理垃圾的法國非營利性組織「海洋清潔行動」，上月底開始發出以上警示。

Divers had found what Joffrey Peltier of the organization described as “COVID waste” — dozens of gloves, masks and bottles of hand sanitizer beneath the waves of the Mediterranean, mixed in with the usual litter of disposable cups and aluminum cans.

該組織的喬費‧佩爾傑所說的「COVID垃圾」，被潛水員發現──地中海波濤之下，幾十個手套、口罩及乾洗手瓶罐，夾雜在常見的拋棄式杯子和鋁罐等垃圾之中。

The quantities of masks and gloves found were far from enormous, said Peltier. But he worried that the discovery hinted at a new kind of pollution, one set to become ubiquitous after millions around the world turned to single-use plastics to combat the coronavirus. “It’s the promise of pollution to come if nothing is done,” said Peltier.

佩爾傑表示，所發現的口罩及手套數量遠稱不上龐大。但他擔心，這個發現意味一種新的污染──在全球數百萬人開始使用拋棄式塑膠製品來對抗冠狀病毒後，這種污染將無所不在。佩爾傑說：「如果不採取任何措施，這鐵定將帶來污染」。

In France alone, authorities have ordered two billion disposable masks, said Laurent Lombard of Operation Mer Propre. “Knowing that soon we’ll run the risk of having more masks than jellyfish in the Mediterranean,” he wrote on social media alongside video of a dive showing algae-entangled masks and soiled gloves in the sea near Antibes.

「海洋清潔行動」的羅宏‧隆巴表示，光是在法國，政府就訂購了二十億個拋棄式口罩。他在社群媒體貼出一段潛水拍攝的影片，顯示安提貝附近海域中被藻類纏繞的口罩及髒污的手套，並寫道：「我知道不久之後，我們可能面臨地中海裡的口罩比水母多的險境」。

The group hopes the images will prompt people to embrace reusable masks and swap latex gloves for more frequent handwashing. “With all the alternatives, plastic isn’t the solution to protect us from COVID-19. That’s the message,” said Peltier.

該組織希望這些影像能促使人們改用可重複使用的口罩，並以更頻繁洗手來代替乳膠手套的使用。「塑膠並不是避免感染武漢肺炎的解決方案，我們還有很多別的選擇。這就是所傳達出的訊息」，佩爾傑說。

In the years leading up to the pandemic, environmentalists had warned of the threat posed to oceans and marine life by skyrocketing plastic pollution. As much as 13 million metric tonnes of plastic goes into oceans each year, according to a 2018 estimate by UN Environment. The Mediterranean sees 570,000 metric tonnes of plastic flow into it annually — an amount the WWF has described as equal to dumping 33,800 plastic bottles every minute into the sea.

在疫情爆發前的幾年，環保人士便已提出警告，指出塑膠污染的暴增已對海洋及海洋生物造成威脅。根據聯合國環境署二○一八年的估計，每年有多達一千三百萬噸的塑膠進入海洋。地中海地區每年流入的塑膠量為五十七萬噸──相當於世界自然基金會所描述的，每分鐘向海裡傾倒三萬三千八百個塑膠瓶。 

These figures risk growing substantially as countries around the world confront the coronavirus pandemic. Masks often contain plastics such as polypropylene, said Eric Pauget, a French politician whose region includes the Cote d’Azur .

隨著世界各國面臨冠狀病毒大流行，這些數字有可能大大增加。選區包括蔚藍海岸的法國政界人士艾瑞克‧波杰表示，口罩通常含有塑膠，例如聚丙烯。

“With a lifespan of 450 years, these masks are an ecological timebomb given their lasting environmental consequences for our planet,” he wrote last month in a letter to French President Emmanuel Macron, calling on him to do more to address the environmental consequences of disposable masks.

波杰在上月致法國總統艾曼紐‧馬克宏的信中寫道：「這些口罩的壽命為四百五十年，是生態炸彈，因其對地球環境會造成長久的影響」。他呼籲馬克宏採取更多作為，來處理拋棄式口罩的環境衝擊。

今年稍早，總部位於香港的「海洋亞洲」對無人居的香港索罟群島進行海洋垃圾調查，在發現了幾十個拋棄式口罩後，開始表達像這樣的擔憂。

Earlier this year the Hong Kong-based OceansAsia began voicing similar concerns, after a survey of marine debris in the city’s uninhabited Soko Islands turned up dozens of disposable masks.

「海洋亞洲」的蓋瑞‧史托克斯說：「在長約一百公尺的海灘上，我們發現了大約七十個口罩」。一週後，又發現三十個口罩被沖刷上岸。「而且那是茫茫大海中的一個無人島」。

“On a beach about 100m long, we found about 70,” said Gary Stokes of OceansAsia. One week later, another 30 masks had washed up. “And that’s on an uninhabited island in the middle of nowhere.” Curious to see how far the masks had travelled, he began checking other nearby beaches. “We’re finding them everywhere,” he said. “Ever since society started wearing masks, the cause and effects are being seen on the beaches.”

他很好奇口罩究竟漂流了多遠，便開始檢視附近其他海灘。他說：「我們到處都可以找到口罩」。「自從大家開始戴口罩以來，這因果關係在海灘上就可以看得到」。

While some of the debris could be attributed to carelessness, he speculated that the lightweight masks were at times also being carried from land, boats and landfills by the wind.

雖然一些垃圾可能是因為亂丟而造成的，但因口罩的重量很輕，他推測它們有時也會被風從陸地、船上及垃圾掩埋場中吹過來。 

“It’s just another item of marine debris,” he said, likening the masks to plastic bags or straws that often wash up on the city’s more remote shorelines. “It’s no better, no worse, just another item we’re leaving as a legacy to the next generation.”

他說：「這只是另一種海洋垃圾」，口罩跟塑膠袋或吸管一樣，常在香港較偏僻的海岸被沖刷上來。「口罩也沒什麼不同，只不過是另一樣我們遺留給下一代的東西」。

Still, given the likelihood that porpoises and dolphins in the region could mistake a mask for food, he was bracing himself for a grim find.

儘管如此，因附近的小鯨與海豚可能會誤將口罩當做食物，他已有心理準備會發現殘酷的事。

“We’re constantly getting them washing up dead and we’re just waiting for a necropsy when we find a mask inside,” he said. “I think it’s inevitable.”

他說：「我們不斷讓牠們死亡，然後被沖上岸，我們遲早會在解剖時，發現牠們體內有口罩」。 「我認為這一定會發生」。

Source article: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2020/06/16/2003738268

 

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.896: Tesla overtakes Toyota and Exxon’s market value in symbolic shifts

Last Wednesday, Tesla Inc. displaced Toyota Motor Corp. as the world’s most valuable automaker, underscoring investor enthusiasm for a company trying to transform an industry that has relied on internal combustion engines for more than 130 years.

特斯拉上週三取代豐田汽車，成為全球市值最高的汽車製造商，凸顯投資人對一家嘗試為倚賴內燃機超過一百三十年之汽車工業帶來轉型的公司非常有興趣。

Tesla Inc.’s market value also surpassed Exxon Mobil Corp.’s last Tuesday in a sign that investors are increasingly betting on a global energy transition away from fossil fuels.

特斯拉的市值在上週二也已超過石油巨擘埃克森美孚，此跡象顯示有越來越多投資人押注在淘汰化石燃料的全球能源轉型。

Exxon is the world’s second biggest energy company after Saudi state-controlled oil giant Aramco went public late last year.

埃克森美孚是世界第二大能源公司，僅次於去年底上市的沙烏地阿拉伯國有石油巨頭阿美公司。

Shares of Tesla, which have more than doubled since the start of the year, climbed as much as 3.5 percent in intraday trading last Wednesday, giving it a market capitalization of US$207.2 billion, surpassing Toyota’s US$201.9 billion.

自今年初以來，特斯拉的股價已翻漲了一倍多。在上週三的盤中交易，特斯拉的股價上漲了三點五個百分點，使其市值達到兩千零七十二億美元，超越了豐田的兩千零十九億美元。

Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk has ignored or broken many of the established auto industry’s rules and norms in the 10 years since he took Tesla public, selling cars online and assembling vehicles in high-cost California. But while his company’s value has soared, there remains a gulf in the scale of his company and the world’s biggest car manufacturers.

汽車業已建立的許多規則與常態，在特斯拉上市以來的十年間，都被執行長伊隆‧馬斯克置若罔顧或打破了。馬斯克在網路上賣車，並在高成本的美國加州組裝車輛。他的公司雖然市值飛漲，但特斯拉之規模與全球最大的一些汽車製造商相比，仍有很大的落差。

Tesla produced 103,000 vehicles in the first quarter, or about 4 percent of the almost 2.4 million made by Toyota, which built its brand on affordability and reliability backed by innovations in large-scale manufacturing.

特斯拉在第一季生產了十萬零三千輛車，約為豐田近兩百四十萬輛之生產量的百分之四。豐田的汽車以民眾買得起、性能可靠而著名，其創新技術可被大量製造。

Tesla became the world’s second most valuable automaker in January, when it surpassed Volkswagen AG. It is now worth more than twice the German giant.

特斯拉在一月份超越大眾汽車，成為市值全球第二之汽車製造商。現在特斯拉的市值是這家德國汽車巨頭的兩倍多。

After pioneering gas-electric vehicles with the Prius hybrid, Toyota was late to shift to fully electric autos and has wagered heavily on hydrogen fuel cells. The company is now making a series of high-profile investments in electric vehicles (EVs) and self-driving cars. The manufacturer has forecast an 80 percent plunge in profit this year due to the COVID-19 pandemic, and expects it could take until the first half of next year before the auto market recovers to pre-pandemic levels.

豐田以Prius混合動力汽車開創了油電複合動力車之先河，卻很慢才轉向純電動車，它先前投入大量資源押注的是氫燃料電池。豐田目前正對電動車及自動駕駛汽車進行一系列引人注目的投資。由於武漢肺炎（新冠病毒病，COVID-19）的影響，豐田預測今年其營收將大減百分之八十，並預計車市要到明年上半年才能夠恢復到疫情爆發前之水準。

The market for electric vehicles is forecast to increase to 10 percent of global passenger vehicle sales by 2025, 28 percent in 2030 and 58 percent by 2040, according to a May 19 report by BloombergNEF.

彭博新能源財經在五月十九日的報告中預測，到了二○二五年，電動車之市場將擴大到佔全球乘用車市場的百分之十，到二○三○年將佔百分之二十八，到了二○四○年，將達到百分之五十八。

Source article: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2020/07/07/2003739463

 

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.895: Taiwan’s culinary innovations cause a stir in the world of pizza

Forget your pepperoni or other pizza toppings: Pizza Hut Taiwan has teamed up with Menya Musashi, a popular Japanese ramen restaurant chain, to serve up the world’s first ramen pizza, and it has attracted global interest after a CNN report about the new mashup was published on the front-page of its Japanese version.

忘掉你愛的臘腸或其它配料吧。台灣必勝客近日與熱門日本拉麵連鎖店麵屋武藏合作，共同推出全球首創的「拉麵披薩」！美國有線電視新聞網（CNN）對此混搭的相關報導，還衝上該媒體日本版網站首頁，並進而引發全球關注。

The new pizza has the toppings of a Japanese-style barbecue pork ramen — complete with thick noodles, barbecue pork slices, fresh chilies and white sesame, as well as a half-boiled egg sitting in the middle. It is also garnished with green onions and bamboo shoots on the side.

基本上，這款新口味披薩上有著日式叉燒拉麵的配料——包括粗麵條、叉燒肉片、一些辣椒末和白芝麻，中間還擺著一顆半熟的糖心蛋，旁邊則裝飾著一些青蔥及筍片。

Pizza Hut Taiwan told CNN that its creative pizzas are just a way to introduce some fun into the customer experience. “Taiwanese consumers live a high-pressure life with long working hours and a high cost of living. The food scene has become an exciting and creative escape,” said Lily Chou, the company’s marketing director, adding that it is definitely the first ramen to be served as a slice.

台灣必勝客告訴CNN，它的各種創意披薩其實是想為顧客們帶來一些樂趣。行銷總監周佳麗指出︰「台灣消費者過著高工時、高生活成本的高壓生活，而令人興奮的創意美食已成為逃離壓力的出口，」她還說這絕對是第一款用手吃的拉麵。

The Taiwanese are known for their creativity in making special food and drinks: some of their previous mashups have included matcha green tea pizza, durian pizza, stinky tofu pizza, and even bubble tea pizza. Also known as “boba tea” or “pearl milk tea,” the famous tea of Taiwanese origin mixed with milk and small tapioca balls has become a global sensation in recent years. Domino’s Taiwan even caused a pizza war by launching its “bubble tea pizza” late last year.

台灣人向來以製作新奇飲食的創造力而聞名，之前推出的混搭還包括抹茶披薩、榴槤披薩、臭豆腐披薩，甚至珍珠奶茶披薩等。珍奶在英文中又被稱作波霸奶茶或泡沫奶茶，這種知名茶飲一般混合著牛奶，及樹薯粉製成的粉圓，近年逐漸在世界各地造成轟動。台灣達美樂去年底就因為推出黑糖珍珠披薩，而掀起一場披薩大戰。

“It might be the ultimate meeting of eastern and western cuisine — Taiwan’s famous bubble tea as a topping on a Domino’s pizza,” CNN reported. Domino’s Taiwan originally planned to offer the dessert pizza covered in brown sugar pearls, cheese and honey for a month, but the popularity of the bubble tea pizza secured its spot on the regular menu, and rivals have been trying to join this trend. “In Taiwan everyone loves the texture ‘Q,’ which means chewy or bouncy in the way boba is, and this pizza was indeed very ‘Q,’” Lev Nachman, a US PhD candidate conducting research in Taiwan, told CNN.

CNN稍早報導說︰「台灣著名的珍奶化身達美樂披薩配料——這或許是東方和西方飲食的終極交會。」最初台灣達美樂僅計劃推出這款覆蓋著黑糖珍珠、起司、蜂蜜的甜點披薩一個月，不過因產品大受歡迎，最後被加入正式菜單，其它對手亦開始追逐這股風潮。

在台灣做研究的美籍博士候選人南樂對CNN說：「在台灣，每個人都愛『Q』、也就是有嚼勁、會彈牙的口感，就像珍珠粉圓，而這款珍奶披薩口感的確很『Q』。」

Source article: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2020/07/06/2003739406

 

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.894: About Japan - Dancing robots replace fans at Japanese baseball game

With their stadium devoid of fans due to coronavirus restrictions, Japanese baseball team Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks have come up with an imaginative replacement：dancing robots.

隨著體育場因冠狀病毒限制而少了球迷，日本棒球隊「福岡軟銀鷹」想出了一個富含想像力的替代方案：跳舞機器人。

Before their most recent Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) game against Rakuten Eagles on Tuesday, over 20 robots danced to the team’s fight song on a podium in the otherwise empty stand.

在日職最近一場週二對戰「東北樂天金鷲」的賽事前，超過20個機器人在原本應是空蕩蕩的看台間之講台上，隨著自家隊伍的戰歌起舞。

Two different robots, including SoftBank’s humaniod robot ’Pepper’ and others on four legs like a dog, stamped and shimmied in a choreographed dance that is usually performed by the Hawks’ fans before games in the 40,000 capacity Fukuoka Dome.

2種不同的機器人，包括軟銀類人的機器人「胡椒」，還有另一些像狗有4隻腳的機器人，在一支精心編排的舞蹈中跺地擺動，那通常由軟銀鷹球迷於賽事開始前在可容納4萬人的福岡巨蛋中表演。

Some of the robots wore Hawks caps and waved flags supporting the team.

有些機器人戴著軟銀鷹鴨舌帽，並揮舞旗幟來支持自家隊伍。

Boosted by the supportive robots, the Hawks won 4-3 as they look to defend their 2019 NPB title.

在給予支持的機器人促捧下，軟銀鷹以4比3獲勝，期盼衛冕2019年日本棒球機構的冠軍。

Next Article:

Shocker! Japan firms’ electrifying fabric zaps bacteria 電一下！日本公司的發電織物消滅細菌

It’s a shocking idea：a fabric that can produce small amounts of electricity powered by movement, allowing your clothing to zap microbes and bacteria as you go about your day.

這是一個「電人」的想法：一種能利用活動產生小量電流的布料，讓你的衣服隨著你日常活動，消滅微生物和細菌。

A pair of Japanese firms say that’s exactly what their new product can do, and are touting it for everything from curbing body odour to offering the ideal material for protective gear like face masks.

兩家日本公司說，這正是他們新產品的功能，並且宣稱，從抑制體臭到適合當作像口罩等防護裝備的理想材質，該產品都做得到。

The fabric jointly developed by electronics company Murata Manufacturing and Teijin Frontier, dubbed PIECLEX, generates power from the expansion and contraction of the material itself, including when worn by someone moving around.

這種織物由「村田製作所」以及「帝人富瑞特公司」共同開發，取名為PIECLEX，從穿著者活動時織物的伸縮產生電力。

The low voltages aren’t strong enough to be felt by the wearer, but they effectively stop bacteria and viruses from multiplying inside the fabric, the companies said.

這兩家公司說，產生的電量低，不夠強到會讓穿著者感覺到，但是能有效遏止細菌、病毒在織物內增生。

Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1384984 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1385624

 

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