通勤學英語 15Mins Today

每日英語跟讀 Ep.803: The Venice Carnival and the Flight of the Angel

Thousands of people, many dressed for a traditional masked ball, crowded into Saint Mark’s Square on Sunday to witness “the flight of the angel,” the opening event of the annual Venice Carnival.

數千人上週日湧入聖馬可廣場──其中許多人是一身傳統化妝舞會的行頭──來見證「飛翔的天使」，為一年一度的威尼斯狂歡節揭開序幕。

The first Sunday of the carnival, a young woman chosen as “Marie” has the honor of performing the stunt, gliding through the air on a harness attached to a cable from the 99m bell-tower of Saint Mark’s Basilica to a stage below.

狂歡節的第一個星期日，獲選為「瑪麗」的年輕女子，肩負表演此絕技的榮譽──吊掛著從聖馬可大教堂九十九公尺高的鐘樓沿纜線一滑而下，抵達廣場上的舞台。

As she soars overhead, the angel tosses confetti at the onlookers below.

“This is pure energy, I feel the energy rise from my feet as if I’m floating on air,” this year’s angel Linda Pani told AFP-TV.

她由眾人頭頂飛過，一邊向仰望的群眾灑下五彩碎紙。

今年獲選擔任天使的琳達‧帕尼對法新社電視台說：「這純粹是種能量，我感覺到腳下升起一股能量，讓我就像飄浮在空中一樣」。

“It was extraordinary, I felt the wind, the sea, the ground and the fire in me,” she added, describing the experience as “perhaps the happiest three minutes of my life.”

「這真是美妙絕倫，我感覺到自己內在有風、海、土地與火」，她補充說，這段體驗「也許是我一生中最快樂的三分鐘」。

The centuries-old Venice Carnival, rooted in Christian festivities ahead of the fasting period of Lent, attracts crowds of foreign and Italian tourists to its masked balls and theatrical performances.

The carnival, which lasts until Feb. 25, was created in Venice in 1162, the day after a military victory.

有數百年歷史的威尼斯狂歡節，源於齋期前的基督宗教慶典活動。威尼斯狂歡節的面具化妝舞會與戲劇表演，吸引了義大利國內外眾多遊客。

將於二月二十五日落幕的威尼斯狂歡節，首次舉行是在西元一一六二年，打了一場勝仗後的次日。

Source article: http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2020/02/22/2003731389

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.802: About health - Wearing masks in office： etiquette or overreaction?

It has become a norm to wear face masks on subways and buses, and in other public spaces since the coronavirus outbreak, but there has been a raging debate over whether or not it is appropriate to wear them at the office.

自（新型）冠狀病毒爆發以來，在地鐵與公車上，以及在其他公共空間，戴口罩已成為一種常態。但關於在辦公室戴口罩適當與否一事，已有一番激辯。

Some say it is necessary for people to wear a mask at all times to protect themselves from the contagious virus, but others argue covering one’s face is considered ill-mannered.

有些人認為，人們有必要隨時戴口罩，俾保護自己免於遭接觸傳染的病毒感染。惟其他人主張，遮住臉部會被認為沒禮貌。

Yoon Hae-rim wore a face mask at her office in Seoul. But more than a dozen of people told her she was overreacting as there weren’t any infected people in the office. On the other hand, Lee Se-joong couldn’t decide whether or not to tell a junior staff member to wear a face mask as a safety measure because he was coughing and sneezing.

尹海琳（譯音）在她位於（南韓）首爾的辦公室戴口罩。但超過12個同事說她反應過度，因為辦公室沒有任何人遭感染。另一方面，李世中（譯音）則無法決定是否跟一名職場男後輩說要戴口罩作為防護措施，因為此人正在咳嗽和打噴嚏。

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Napping is good for heart health, study finds 研究：小睡有益心臟健康

Rejoice, nap lovers! A recent study found a daytime snooze once or twice a week could benefit your heart.

歡呼吧，愛打盹的人！最近一份研究發現，每週在白天時間打盹一兩次，對心臟有助益。

In a study published Monday in the journal Heart, researchers from the University Hospital of Lausanne in Switzerland detailed the results from their study on the relationship between napping frequency/average nap time and the risk of fatal and nonfatal cardiovascular disease （CVD）.

瑞士洛桑大學醫院的研究人員週一發表在《心臟》期刊上的一項研究中，詳細介紹他們對小睡頻率／平均小睡時間，與致命性和非致命性心血管疾病（CVD）風險之間關係的研究結果。

For the study, researchers tracked 3,462 Swiss adults between the ages of 35 and 75 for a little more than five years. When the study began, 58 percent of participants said they had not napped in the previous week, while 19 percent said they took one to two naps. Roughly 12 percent took three to five, while 11 percent took six to seven.

在這項研究中，研究人員對3462名年齡介於35歲至75歲之間的瑞士成年人，進行為期5年多的追蹤調查。在這項研究開始時，58％的參與者說他們在前一週沒有午睡過，19％說他們午睡1到2次。約12％午睡3到5次，11％睡了6到7次。

By the end, they concluded that those who took a nap once or twice a week had a 48 percent lower risk of suffering a heart attack, stroke or heart failure than those who did not take naps.

最後，他們得出結論，每週小睡1到2次的人罹患心臟病、中風或心臟衰竭的風險，比不小睡的人低48％。

Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1352376 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1351244

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.801: NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson dies at 101

Katherine Johnson, the black woman whose mathematical genius took her from a behind-the-scenes job in a segregated NASA as portrayed in the film “Hidden Figures” to a key role in sending humans to the moon, died on Monday at the age of 101, NASA said.

美國航空暨太空總署（NASA）日前表示，非裔女性數學家凱薩琳‧喬森於週一過世，享嵩壽101歲。喬森的數學天賦讓她在當年實行種族隔離的美國太空總署，從幕後工作──正如電影《關鍵少數》描繪的情況──躍升為人類登月任務的關鍵角色。

Johnson was awarded a Presidential Medal of Freedom by then President Barack Obama in 2015, and in 2016 he cited her in his State of the Union Address as an example of America’s spirit of discovery. “She’s one of the greatest minds ever to grace our agency or our country,” then NASA Administrator Charles Bolden said when Johnson was presented the presidential medal.

二○一五年，喬森獲時任美國總統歐巴馬親授總統自由勳章，歐巴馬更在二○一六年的國情咨文中將喬森譽為美國「探索精神」的典範。獲獎當時，時任NASA署長查爾斯．波頓表示：「喬森是史上最偉大的一位才智之士，榮耀本署並為美國增光。」

Johnson and her black colleagues at the fledgling NASA were known as “computers” when that term was used not for a programmed electronic device but for a person who did computations. They were little known to the public for decades but gained overdue recognition when the book “Hidden Figures” was published and the 2016 Oscar-nominated movie hit the screens. Johnson attended the 2017 Oscars ceremony, joining the film’s cast in presenting an award for documentaries, and was given a standing ovation.

在NASA創立初期，喬森和她的非裔同事們被譽為「計算機」──當年「電腦」一詞還沒被用來稱呼用程式運算的電子裝置，而是指負責計算數值的人。數十年來，她們少為大眾所知。在《關鍵少數》一書出版，並改編為電影，獲得二○一六年奧斯卡多項提名後，這群非裔女性數學家終於獲得遲來的肯定。喬森曾出席二○一七年的奧斯卡頒獎典禮，並和該電影的演員們一起頒發紀錄片獎項，獲得全場起立鼓掌。

Johnson had a groundbreaking career of 33 years with the space agency, working on the Mercury and Apollo missions, including the first moon landing in 1969, and the early years of the space shuttle program. Astronaut John Glenn thought so much of her that he insisted Johnson be consulted before his historic earth-orbiting flight in 1962. “He knew I had done (the calculations) before for him and they trusted my work,” Johnson told the Washington Post in 2017.

喬森在NASA度過石破天驚的三十三年職涯，參與過水星任務和阿波羅任務，包括一九六九年人類第一次登月，以及早期的太空梭計畫。太空人約翰‧葛倫非常信賴喬森，以至於他在一九六二年執行歷史性的繞行地球任務前，還堅持一定要諮詢過喬森才能出發。喬森後來在二○一七年時向《華盛頓郵報》表示：「他知道我已經在他之前先做完（那些計算）了，他們也相信我的結果。」

During the space race between the US and the former Soviet Union that began in the late 1950s, Johnson and her co-workers ran the numbers for unmanned rocket launches, test flights and airplane safety studies using pencils, slide rules and mechanical calculating machines. But they did their work in facilities separate from white workers and were required to use separate restrooms and dining facilities.

從一九五○年代晚期開始，美國與當時的蘇聯展開太空競賽，喬森和她的同事們就用鉛筆、計算尺，以及機械式計算機，為無載人火箭發射、測試飛行，以及飛行器安全研究等項目進行運算。然而，她們工作的區域跟白人員工分開，還被要求使用區隔開來的洗手間和用餐區。

Johnson always said she was too busy with her work to be concerned with racism. “She didn’t close her eyes to the racism that existed,” Margot Lee Shetterly wrote in “Hidden Figures.” “She knew just as well as any other black person the tax levied upon them because of their color. But she didn’t feel it in the same way. She wished it away, willed it out of existence inasmuch as her daily life was concerned.”

喬森總是說，她太忙於工作而無暇顧慮種族歧視。不過，瑪歌‧李‧雪德利在《關鍵少數》一書中寫道：「喬森從未閉上眼睛，忽視當時存在的種族主義。」「她和其他非裔美國人同樣了解因膚色而被加諸於身上的負擔與壓力，但喬森並沒有用同樣的方式感受這項問題。就她的日常生活層面而言，她希望種族歧視消失，並且用意志力讓它不再存在。」

As a girl, Johnson was fascinated by numbers and counted everything, even the steps she took while walking and the dishes she washed after dinner. She grew up in West Virginia at a time when educational opportunities for blacks were limited because of segregation. But her mother, a former teacher, and her father, a farmer and handyman, stressed education and moved the family 193km to a town that had a high school for black children.

喬森從小就著迷於數字，生活中各種事物都是她算數的對象，甚至是走路時踏過的台階、吃完晚餐後洗過的碗。她成長於西維吉尼亞州，但是當時非裔美國人的教育機會卻因種族隔離而受到限制。喬森的母親曾是一位教師，父親則是農夫和雜務工，他們相當重視教育，遂把全家搬到一百九十三公里外的城鎮，當地有非裔美國人小孩可以就讀的高中。

Johnson’s math skills got her into West Virginia State College at age 15. She zipped through the school’s math program, earning degrees in math and French before becoming one of the first black students in the graduate school at West Virginia University in 1938.

喬森的數學能力讓她在十五歲時進入西維吉尼亞州立大學就讀。她迅速通過大學裡的數學學程，取得數學和法語學士學位，並在一九三八年成為西維吉尼亞大學第一批畢業的非裔學生之一。

Johnson went to work for the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics, a forerunner of NASA, in Hampton in 1953 with dozens of other black women. Johnson found herself in a realm made up almost exclusively of white men when she was chosen to be part of the team supporting the 1961 mission that made Alan Shepard the first American in space.

喬森在一九五三年與數十名其他非裔女性進入位於漢普頓的美國國家航空諮詢委員會工作，也就是NASA的前身。當她被選拔參與協助艾倫‧謝帕德執行美國一九六一年首次載人太空飛行任務時，喬森發現自己處在一個幾乎成員只限於白人男性的領域。

She would go on to calculate crucial rocket trajectories, orbital paths and launch windows. Johnson made the transition to the computer era and worked on the shuttle program while writing or co-writing 26 research reports before retiring in 1986, NASA said. She said she was most proud of her contributions to the first moon mission, which included the calculations that synched the lunar lander craft and the orbiting command module.

喬森後來繼續貢獻心力，運算重要的火箭軌道、環繞路徑，以及發射窗口（指最適合發射載具的一段時間範圍）。NASA表示，喬森成功過渡到電腦時代，致力於太空梭任務，並且在一九八六年退休前，以作者或共同作者的身分完成二十六份研究報告。喬森表示，她最感到驕傲的是自己在人類首次登月任務中做出的貢獻，包括讓登月小艇和環繞月球軌道的指揮艙能夠同步的運算。

Source article: http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2020/03/01/2003731833/2

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.800: Fireflies threatened globally, with light pollution a glaring problem

Fireflies are under threat globally, with familiar hazards such as habitat loss and pesticides compounded by another peril: humankind’s ubiquitous nighttime artificial light that plays havoc with their balletic nocturnal courtship, scientists said.

全球螢火蟲普遍受到威脅，常見危害包括棲息地喪失和人類使用殺蟲劑。科學家指出，另一項危機使目前情況更為惡化：無所不在的夜晚人造燈光，打亂了螢火蟲夜間如芭蕾舞般的求偶行為。

In the most comprehensive worldwide assessment to date of dangers facing these flying beetles, researchers concluded that some of the more than 2,000 firefly species may face extinction threats while others are doing just fine. Using assessments from 350 experts on fireflies from around the world, the researchers determined that the top threat was habitat loss and fragmentation caused by factors such as urbanization, industrialization and agricultural intensification.

在一項目前最廣泛的全球性評估中，研究人員檢視這類飛行甲蟲面臨的危機，並做出以下結論：全世界兩千多種螢火蟲中，其中一些恐怕正面臨絕種威脅，而其他種螢火蟲狀況尚屬良好。研究人員運用全球各地三百五十位螢火蟲專家提供的評估報告，判定首要的威脅來自棲地喪失和破碎，主要是因為都市化、工業化，以及精耕細作的集約農業等因素導致。

The second-leading threat was light pollution. Fireflies boast specialized light-emitting organs, typically on their lower abdomen, called lanterns. Fireflies flash to communicate as a part of courtship and reproduction. “Light pollution affects lots of nocturnal creatures, but fireflies are especially susceptible to this particular threat,” said biology professor Sara Lewis of Tufts University in Massachusetts, US, who led the research published on Feb. 3 in the journal Bioscience.

第二項主要威脅則是光害。螢火蟲擁有專門的發光器官，普遍位於它們的下腹部，稱為發光器。螢火蟲們發出閃光進行溝通，這是它們求偶與繁殖行為的其中一環。美國麻薩諸塞州塔夫茨大學的生物學教授莎拉‧路易斯是這篇研究的主持人，她指出：「光害會影響許多夜行性生物，但是螢火蟲特別容易受到這項威脅影響。」該研究已於二月三日發表在期刊《生物科學》上。

“That’s because many — though not all — fireflies rely on bioluminescent courtship signals to find their mates. When their nighttime environment is too bright, it’s difficult for them to see one another’s signals, so they never get to hook up,” Lewis added. Satellite data has shown nighttime light pollution from the incessant flow of electric lights expanding on a global scale.

路易斯補充表示：「雖然並非全部如此，但是許多螢火蟲仰賴生物發光的求偶訊號，以找尋交配對象。當它們身處的夜晚環境太過明亮時，就會很不容易看到另一隻螢火蟲的信號，也因此永遠不能配對成功。」從衛星資料可以看到，持續不斷發亮的電燈在夜晚造成光害，已經漫延到全球性的規模。

The third-leading threat was widespread agricultural use of pesticides. Most exposure occurs during the fireflies’ larval stages because juveniles spend up to two years living below ground or under water. The researchers said that while there is scant data on long-term population trends for most species, there is evidence that these insects have vanished from many places where they formerly were abundant.

第三項主要威脅來自於人類在農業上廣泛使用殺蟲劑。大部分暴露於殺蟲劑中的影響發生在螢火蟲的幼蟲階段，因為幼體會花上最多兩年的時間在地底下或是水中生活。研究人員表示，關於大多數螢火蟲種類長期數量趨勢變化的資料相當缺乏，但是仍有證據顯示，在許多螢火蟲曾經繁衍旺盛的地方，現在已經看不到它們的蹤影。

Fireflies, commonly known as “hue kim goo” (fire gold lady) in Hoklo (commonly known as Taiwanese), inhabit every continent but Antarctica, preferring moist habitats like forests, fields and marshes. “Sometimes they flash, sometimes they glow,” said study co-author Avalon Owens, a Tufts biology doctoral student. “Sometimes the females have wings. Sometimes they look like fat larvae with big eyeballs. Some are over 5cm long. Some are less than 1.25cm. The flash color is generally somewhere between green and orange, though some can look kind of bluish.”

螢火蟲台語又稱為「火金姑」，棲息於南極洲以外的每一塊大陸上，它們偏愛森林、田野和沼澤這類潮溼的棲息地。該研究的共同作者、塔夫茨大學的生物學博士生阿瓦隆‧歐文斯表示：「有時候螢火蟲閃爍發光，有時候則是持續發光。」他補充說：「有些種類的母螢火蟲有翅膀，有些種類外觀看起來像是胖胖的幼蟲，帶有一對大眼珠。有些螢火蟲身長超過五公分，有些可以小於一點二五公分。螢火蟲閃光的顏色通常是介於綠色和橘色之間，但有時候看起來也有帶一點藍色。」

“I know a lot of people who really hate insects, but I’ve never met anyone who doesn’t love fireflies,” Lewis added. “They might be tiny, but they’re among our best ambassadors for Earth’s natural magic.”

路易斯補充說：「我認識很多人是真的討厭昆蟲，但我從來沒有遇到過不喜歡螢火蟲的人。」她也說：「螢火蟲或許體型很小，但它們可說是代表地球自然界魔法最稱職的大使。」

Source article: http://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2020/02/23/2003731441/2

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每日英語跟讀 Ep.799: About Europe - Sausage vending machines booming in Germany

Hungry Germans craving a sausage in the dead of night are increasingly turning to vending machines for their bratwurst, bockwurst, and so on. The machines are booming outside German cities where shops are less likely to stay open for long hours, according to a survey by the German Press Agency.

在深夜裡飢腸轆轆、想吃香腸的德國人，愈來愈常利用自動販賣機購買巴雷特煎腸、博克香腸等食品。德新社調查顯示，這類自動販賣機在德國城市以外的地區大幅增加，因為當地商店的營業時間沒那麼長。

Some butchers’ vending machines sell three or four types of sausages, and punnets of accompanying potato salad – so customers can buy all they need for a traditional hearty German feast anytime.

某些肉商設置的自動販賣機提供3到4種香腸，還搭配一小盒馬鈴薯沙拉，讓顧客隨時都能買到一頓豐盛的德國傳統餐點。

There are over 570,000 vending machines in Germany, but despite their popularity they are expected to complement, rather than replace traditional shops.

德國目前有逾57萬台自動販賣機，儘管廣受歡迎，人們仍認為這些販賣機只是為傳統商店增色，而非取而代之。

"Vending machines will play a complementary role in brick-and-mortar retailing," Wolfgang Kampmeier of the Berlin-Brandenburg trade association told the Berliner Zeitung newspaper.

「柏林布蘭登堡貿易協會」的沃夫岡．坎普邁耶向《柏林日報》表示：「自動販賣機將在實體商店零售業務中扮演互補角色。」

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French ski resort uses helicopters to deliver snow for bare slopes 法國滑雪場以直升機送雪到裸露的山坡

A ski resort in the Pyrenees arranged for around 50 tonnes of snow to be dropped on its slopes. Taken from higher mountains, the snow was dumped on slopes for beginners and children.

庇里牛斯山的一座滑雪場，將約50噸的雪填到山坡上。這些從更高的山取來的雪，被傾倒在供初學者與兒童使用的山坡上。

Temperatures have risen above 10 ºC across the Pyrenees this week, leaving ski slopes devoid of snow.

庇里牛斯山本週的氣溫已升至攝氏10度以上，導致滑雪斜坡缺雪。

In order to keep the ski resort open, the local council arranged for snow to be sent at a cost of more than 5,000 euros（£4,150）.

為了讓這座滑雪場維持營運，當地委員會耗費超過5000歐元（約4150英鎊），安排將雪送過去。

The director of the local council said it was a worthwhile investment. The school holidays in February and March are typically the busiest time of year for ski resorts in France.

當地委員會主任表示，這是一筆值得的投資。二月和三月的學校假期，通常是法國滑雪場一年中最忙碌的時候。

However, the delivery of snow has been criticised by environmental groups. The director conceded that moving the snow was not a "particularly ecological" solution but said "we had no choice".

然而，送雪一直遭到環境團體批評。該名主任坦承，移動雪不是一個「特別環保」的作法，但「我們別無選擇」。

Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1353148 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1354230

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