通勤學英語 15Mins Today

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K540: Snakes, Lizards and Desserts Meet in Malaysia's First Reptile Café Malaysian reptile enthusiast Yap Ming Yang has opened Malaysia's first reptile cafe, hoping to encourage visitors to appreciate snakes and lizards as much as they do furry animals such as dogs and cats. The cafe, located on the outskirts of Kuala Lumpur, features bearded dragons, leopard geckos, and corn snakes, which are commonly bred in the country. Customers can hold and pet the scaly animals while ordering drinks and food, including desserts. 馬來西亞爬蟲類愛好者Yap Ming Yang開設了馬來西亞第一家爬蟲咖啡館，希望鼓勵遊客像喜歡狗和貓一樣喜歡蛇和蜥蜴。這家咖啡館位於吉隆坡市郊，設有常見的鬍鬚龍、豹紋壁虎和玉米蛇等品種，這些動物在該國繁殖普遍。顧客在點飲料和食物，包括甜點時可以撫摸這些有鱗片的動物。 Yap, who has a background in environmental science and is part of a community of Malaysians interested in herpetology, believes that reptiles and snakes are often overlooked in favor of furry animals. He hopes that by showing the public how interesting and unique these animals are, they will develop a better outlook on reptiles and less-loved animals. Children are among the customers who visit the cafe, providing an opportunity to educate them about the importance of wildlife conservation. 擁有環境科學背景並且是一群熱愛爬蟲學的馬來西亞人社區的一員，Yap認為爬蟲類和蛇往往被忽視，而更受人喜愛的是毛茸茸的動物。他希望透過向公眾展示這些動物有多麼有趣和獨特，讓人們對爬蟲類和其他不受歡迎的動物有更好的看法。許多小孩也是咖啡館的顧客，這提供了一個教育他們野生動物保護重要性的機會。 Although Malaysia is rich in biodiversity, it is also a major source for illegally trafficked wildlife. By showcasing these animals in a pet-friendly and educational setting, the reptile cafe may help promote responsible pet ownership and discourage the illegal trade of wildlife. Yap's cafe is an innovative way to raise awareness and appreciation for reptiles and to promote their conservation. 雖然馬來西亞生物多樣性豐富，但也是非法走私野生動物的主要來源國。透過在一個寵物友善和教育性的環境中展示這些動物，爬蟲咖啡館可能有助於促進負責任的寵物飼養方式，並遏制野生動物非法貿易。Yap的咖啡館是提高人們對爬蟲類的認識和欣賞，促進其保護的創新方式。Article referenced from: https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/snakes-lizards-desserts-meet-malaysias-first-reptile-cafe-2023-02-27/

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K537: Beyond Meat's Upbeat 2023 Revenue Forecast and Cost Controls Boost Shares Despite Inflation Concerns Beyond Meat's Upbeat 2023 Revenue Forecast and Cost Controls Boost Shares Despite Inflation Concerns Beyond Meat, the plant-based meat producer, announced a revenue forecast for 2023 that is slightly higher than analysts' predictions. Despite concerns about high inflation and slow growth, the company expects to generate between $375 million and $415 million in revenue next year. Beyond Meat's shares rose by more than 13% after the announcement, as investors were encouraged by the company's plans to double down on cost controls. However, analysts caution that Beyond Meat has had to lower its guidance multiple times in the past few years, and increased competition and consumers trading down to cheaper products may hurt growth. Beyond Meat發表了2023年的收益預測，略高於分析師的預測。儘管存在高通脹和經濟增長放緩的問題，該公司預計明年將創造3.75至4.15億萬美元的收入。在公司計劃加倍控制成本的鼓舞下，Beyond Meat的股價上漲了逾13％。然而，分析師提醒稱，Beyond Meat在過去幾年中不得不多次降低預測，且增加的競爭和消費者轉向更便宜的產品可能會損害公司的增長。 Beyond Meat expects to reduce operating expenses by 22% in 2023, compared to a 9% increase in 2022. The company's net revenue fell 21% to $79.9 million in Q4 2022 compared to the previous year, but still beat analysts' expectations. The net loss for the company narrowed to $66.9 million, or $1.05 per share, in Q4 2022, which was better than analysts' estimates. Beyond Meat had previously announced that it was targeting cash flow positive operations in the second half of 2023. Beyond Meat預計在2023年將運營開支降低22％，而2022年則增加了9％。該公司2022年第四季度的凈收入與去年同期相比下降了21％，但仍超出了分析師的預期。公司的凈虧損在2022年第四季度縮小至6690萬美元，每股虧損1.05美元，優於分析師的預估。Beyond Meat之前已宣布，公司將在2023年下半年實現正現金流。 Despite concerns about inflation and competition, Beyond Meat's cost control measures and optimistic revenue forecast have encouraged investors. However, analysts caution that the company has had to lower its guidance multiple times in the past few years, and competition and cost pressures may impact future growth. 儘管存在通脹和競爭的問題，Beyond Meat的成本控制措施和樂觀的收益預測鼓舞了投資者。然而，分析師提醒稱，公司在過去幾年中曾多次降低預測，競爭和成本壓力可能會影響未來的增長。Article referenced from: https://www.agriculture.com/markets/newswire/update-3-beyond-meats-upbeat-2023-revenue-forecast-cost-controls-lift-shares

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 1. To make hay while the sun shines （打鐵趁熱） Hay（乾草）是農場、牧場重要的動物飼料。乾草的組成包含麥草、豆類植物的莖和葉，苜蓿芽等等，要取得乾草，必須在植物開花前，就進行收割，而且據說乾草的保存並不容易，天氣如果太乾燥或太炎熱，有時候容易造成乾草堆起火，造成農場火災；如果太潮濕，乾草容易滋生細菌，其中的營養價值也會降低。 這句諺語形容，當農夫收割新鮮的草後，他們會把握陽光普照的日子，在太陽底下將乾草曬乾，以利後續製作成乾草堆，因此延伸出打鐵趁熱之意。 The idiom "make hay while the sun shines" means to take advantage of an opportunity while it is available or to make use of favorable conditions while they last. The phrase originated from the practice of farmers harvesting hay on dry, sunny days when the hay is more likely to dry quickly and prevent it from rotting. Thus, the phrase is often used to encourage people to act quickly and make the most of a good situation before it passes or becomes less advantageous Example Sentences: "I know you're tired, but we should finish this project while we have the chance. Let's make hay while the sun shines." "The stock market is doing well right now, so it's a good time to invest. You should make hay while the sun shines." "We're going on vacation next week, so let's finish all our work before we go. We need to make hay while the sun shines." 2. Once in a blue moon （鮮少地、罕見地） Blue moon不是字面上的藍月，而是形容同一個月分當中，出現的第二個滿月。按照慣例，我們每個月都會見到一次滿月，由於我們在日期上只有一天一天，沒有所謂0.5天這種數字，再加上有些月份30天、有些31天，按照精準計算，滿月大約每 29 天發生一次，因此偶爾一個月會有兩次滿月。根據NASA計算，大約每隔兩年半會發生一個月內出現兩個滿月。據說今年2023年，8月底有機會出現Blue moon！ 也因為每兩年半左右，才會出現一次這樣的現象，所以才衍伸出了Once in a blue moon這樣的用法，有點類似成語「鐵樹開花」，形容少見、難得一見的現象。 The idiom "once in a blue moon" means something that happens very rarely, almost never, or very infrequently. It refers to the occurrence of a second full moon within the same calendar month, which is a relatively rare event. A blue moon is not actually blue in color, but rather a term used to describe the rare phenomenon of two full moons appearing in a single month. This idiom is often used to describe an event that is unusual, unexpected, or happens only very occasionally Example Sentences: "I only see my old college friends once in a blue moon, since we all live in different parts of the country now." "I don't usually go out to eat at fancy restaurants, but I decided to treat myself once in a blue moon." "The last time we had a snowstorm like this was once in a blue moon, over a decade ago." 3. Written in the stars （命中注定） 這則諺語的來源不可考，不過這讓我想到，中世紀人們開始流行觀星、占卜等神秘學，「寫在星星裡」讓人聯想到所謂的觀星象，窺探命運的感覺。 講到星星，就不得不提家喻戶曉的兒歌小星星，小星星的歌詞是一位英國女詩人，Jane taylor於1806年所發表，描述他眼裡看到的星星。雖然是一首來自英國的兒歌，但它的旋律卻是來自18世紀的一首法國童謠，同樣的旋律也被應用在了Alphabet Song。 The phrase "written in the stars" refers to the idea that fate or destiny has already predetermined a certain outcome or event. It suggests that something is inevitable or unavoidable, as if it has been written in the heavens. The origin of the phrase can be traced back to ancient beliefs about astrology and the idea that the positions and movements of the stars can influence human affairs. In modern usage, the phrase is often used to describe the feeling that something is meant to be, or that a certain outcome is inevitable, even if the reasons for that feeling are unclear or unexplainable Example Sentences: "Even though we come from different backgrounds and have faced many obstacles, I know that our love is written in the stars." "The success of their business seemed to be written in the stars, as every decision they made seemed to lead them closer to their goals." When they first met, it was like they were destined to be together - their connection was written in the stars. "Some people believe that their life path is predetermined and written in the stars, while others believe that they have the power to shape their own destiny."

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K537: In Town Where Train Derailed, Lawyers Are Signing Up Clients in Droves In the four weeks since a freight train derailed in East Palestine and released more than 100,000 gallons of toxic chemicals, lawyers have poured into the little town, signing up clients, gathering evidence and already filing more than a dozen lawsuits in federal court on behalf of local residents. 美國一列貨運火車在俄亥俄州東巴勒斯坦鎮脫軌，釋放超過十萬加侖有毒化學物質。事發四周內，律師湧入小鎮與客戶簽約、蒐證，並已代表當地居民在聯邦法院提出超過十二起訴訟。 Their message overall has been one of warning: It may be months, years or possibly even decades before the derailment’s ultimate effect on people’s health, property values or the soil and water becomes clear. 他們的訊息總體而言是警訊之一：火車脫軌對當地居民健康、財產價值和土壤及水源的最終影響，可能要經過數月、數年甚至數十年才會變得清楚。 Further, the lawyers say, early moves by Norfolk Southern, the operator of the train, suggest that getting comprehensive answers from the company will not be easy. 此外，代表當地居民提出訴訟的律師們表示，脫軌列車營運商諾福克南方鐵路公司在事故發生初期的舉措顯示，要從該公司得到全面的答覆並不容易。 Among a public that is deeply skeptical of official test results — Gov. Mike DeWine, a Republican, and other state and federal officials say they have not shown anything alarming so far — or camera-friendly efforts at reassurance, these warnings have resonated. 共和黨籍俄亥俄州州長狄懷恩和其他州與聯邦官員都說，目前為止官方測試結果都沒有令人憂心的情況，但對官方測試或在鏡頭前發表的安撫言論深感懷疑的大眾而言，這些警訊已經引發了共鳴。 “They get what’s happening,” Rene Rocha, a lawyer with personal injury firm Morgan & Morgan, said during a state hearing about the derailment Thursday in Beaver County, Pennsylvania, just across the border from East Palestine. 在與東巴勒斯坦接壤的賓州比佛郡一場關於脫軌事件的州聽證會上，「摩根與摩根」律師事務所人身傷害律師羅查周四表示：「他們明白發生了什麼事。」 Referring to residents there who had spoken at the hearing about headaches, coughs and other classic symptoms of chemical exposure, he added: “They see they’re not getting the truth from the politicians and the company. That leaves the lawyers.” 羅查提到居民們在聽證會上說，他們出現頭痛、咳嗽和其他暴露在化學物質的典型症狀，他表示：「他們認為自己沒有從政治人物和公司那得到真相。那就讓律師來做。」 The huge scale of the chemical burn-off and the harrowing images of the fire, as well as the intense politicization of it all, have made the derailment in East Palestine among the most high-profile environmental disasters in the country in years. 大規模化學物質燃燒和可怕的火災畫面，加上這一切強烈政治化，已使東巴勒斯坦脫軌事件成為美國近年來最引人注目的環境災難。 The legal machinations are in their early stages. Cases might ultimately be consolidated as class-action or multidistrict litigation; most of the suits will almost surely end up bundled before one or several federal judges in an Ohio courtroom. 法律方面的勾心鬥角還處於早期階段。案件最終可能合併為集體訴訟和多地區訴訟，大多數訴訟幾乎肯定最終會由俄亥俄州法庭一名或多名聯邦法官一併處理。 Norfolk Southern may offer some sort of resolution voluntarily, whether by setting up a compensation fund with an independent administrator or establishing a court-supervised medical monitoring program, where people could come for free testing related to possible health effects. 諾福克南方鐵路公司可能會自願提供某些解決方案，不管是設立有獨立管理人的賠償基金，或建立由法院監管的醫療監測計畫，民眾能就可能發生的健康影響接受免費檢測。 The company has already been paying $1,000 in “inconvenience compensation” to people who had to evacuate. Although Norfolk Southern insists that the payments do not curtail anyone’s right to sue, many are skeptical. 諾福克南方鐵路公司已向被撤離的民眾支付一千美元的「不便補償金」。儘管該公司堅稱，付補償金不會限制任何人提出訴訟的權利，但許多人持懷疑態度。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/7008051

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K537: UK’s Sunak tries to win over skeptics to his Brexit deal UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak traveled to Belfast on Tuesday last week to sell his landmark agreement with the European Union to its toughest audience: Unionist politicians who fear post-Brexit trade rules are weakening Northern Ireland’s place in the United Kingdom. 英國首相里希．蘇納克上週二前往北愛爾蘭首府貝爾法斯特，向最嚴苛的聽眾──擔心英國脫歐後的貿易規則削弱北愛爾蘭在英國之地位的北愛民主聯盟黨政客──推銷他與歐盟達成的具里程碑意義的協議。 The UK and the 27-nation EU announced Monday that they had struck a deal to resolve a dispute over Northern Ireland trade that has vexed relations since the UK left the bloc in 2020. The agreement will ease customs checks and other hurdles for goods moving to Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK that were imposed after Brexit to maintain an open border between the north and its EU neighbor, the Republic of Ireland. 英國與歐盟27國上週一宣布，他們已達成協議，解決自2020年英國脫歐以來一直困擾兩方關係的北愛爾蘭貿易爭端。該協議將放寬英國脫歐後強加於北愛爾蘭與英國其他地區之間的海關檢查，以及其他貨物轉運之障礙，以維持北愛與其歐盟鄰國愛爾蘭共和國之間的開放邊界。 The deal, dubbed the “Windsor Framework,” was hailed by London and Brussels as a breakthrough. But Northern Ireland’s British unionist politicians have yet to give it their blessing. Their support is key to restoring Northern Ireland’s semi-autonomous government, which has been toppled by the trade feud, leaving 1.9 million people without a functioning administration. 這稱為「溫莎框架」的協議，被倫敦及布魯塞爾譽為一項突破。但北愛爾蘭主張與英國統一的政客尚未表態支持。他們的背書是重啟北愛爾蘭半自治政府的關鍵，該政府已因貿易爭端被癱瘓，導致有190萬人口的北愛爾蘭沒有政府正常運作。 Sunak told the BBC the deal was “a huge step forward for the people of Northern Ireland” and he was confident politicians there would support it. 蘇納克對BBC表示，該協議是「北愛爾蘭人民向前邁出的一大步」，他相信北愛的政界會支持它。 The Democratic Unionist Party, which had governed alongside Irish nationalists Sinn Fein in the power-sharing administration, walked out of the government a year ago to protest the trade rules and has refused to return until they are scrapped or substantially rewritten. Under Northern Ireland’s political system, power is shared between Irish nationalists and British unionists, and neither side can govern without the other. 在權力分享政府中與愛爾蘭民族主義派的新芬黨共同執政的民主統一黨（DUP），一年前為抗議貿易規則而退出執政，並表示除非該貿易規則被廢除或大幅改寫，他們不會重返政府。在北愛爾蘭的政治體制下，權力由愛爾蘭民族主義派與英國統一派共享，任何一方都不能缺席執政。 DUP leader Jeffrey Donaldson said Tuesday last week that the party would “take our time” to pore over the details of the deal before delivering its verdict. DUP領導人杰弗瑞．唐納森上週二表示，該黨將在做出裁決前「花時間」仔細研究該協議的細節。 Northern Ireland is the only part of the UK that shares a border with an EU member. When the UK left the bloc, the two sides agreed to keep the Irish border free of customs posts and other checks because an open border is a key pillar of Northern Ireland’s peace process. 北愛爾蘭是英國唯一與歐盟成員國接壤的地區。英國離開歐盟時，雙方同意讓愛爾蘭邊境免於海關檢查和其他檢查，因為開放的邊界是北愛爾蘭和平進程的重要支柱。 Instead, there are checks on some goods entering Northern Ireland from the rest of the UK. That angered British unionist politicians in Belfast, who say the new trade border in the Irish Sea undermined Northern Ireland’s place in the UK. 但取而代之的，是對從英國其他地區進入北愛爾蘭的一些商品進行檢查。這激怒了貝爾法斯特的親英統派政客，說愛爾蘭海的新貿易邊界破壞了北愛爾蘭在英國的地位。 Sunak said the new Windsor Framework “removes any sense of an Irish Sea border,” removing checks on the vast majority of goods. It also gives Northern Ireland politicians a mechanism to challenge new EU trade rules that could apply in the region — a key unionist demand. 蘇納克表示，溫莎框架「消除了愛爾蘭海的任何邊界感覺」，取消了對絕大多數商品的檢查。它還為北愛爾蘭政客提供一個機制來挑戰可能適用於該地區的新歐盟貿易規則——這是親英統派的一個關鍵要求。 Business groups largely welcomed the deal, saying it would ease the burdens faced by companies and give Northern Ireland customers access to goods such as English sausages that were blocked under the original post-Brexit rules. 商業團體對這筆交易多表歡迎，稱這將減輕公司的負擔，並讓北愛爾蘭客戶能夠獲得英國脫歐後最初被禁的商品，例如英國香腸。 Some hard-line pro-Brexit politicians in Sunak’s governing Conservatives also were surprisingly positive about the deal. One key figure has yet to weigh in — former UK prime minister Boris Johnson, who negotiated the original Brexit divorce deal that Sunak has now rewritten. 蘇納克執政的保守黨中一些支持脫歐的強硬派政客對這項協議也出乎意料地持積極態度。 只有一位關鍵人物尚未發表意見——前首相鮑里斯．強森，他談判了最初的脫歐協議，蘇納克現在已經改寫了該協議。 The agreement was also welcomed by the White House, which said it was “grateful” the two sides could resolve the dispute. 該協議也受到白宮的歡迎，稱「感謝」雙方能夠解決爭端。Source article: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2023/03/07/2003795599

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments Topic: The Magazine Business, From the Coolest Place to the Coldest One I miss magazines. It’s a strange ache, because they are still sort of with us: staring out from the racks at supermarket checkout lines; fanned wanly around the table in hotel lobbies; showing up in your mailbox long after the subscription was canceled, like an ex who refuses to accept the breakup. 我懷念雜誌，這是一種奇怪的痛，因為它們在某種程度上仍與我們同在。超市排隊結帳時，它們從架上盯著我們；在飯店大廳桌子周圍憔悴晃動；取消訂閱很久後還會出現在信箱，像是拒絕接受分手的舊愛。 But they’re also disappearing. This accelerating erosion has not been big news during a time of pandemic, war and actual erosion, and yet the absence of magazines authoritatively documenting such events, or distracting from them, as they used to do with measured regularity, is keenly felt. 但它們也在消失。在疫情、戰爭與雜誌真的衰微的時期，這種加速衰微並不是什麼大新聞，但人們敏銳地感覺到，缺乏權威性雜誌來記錄這些事件，或像過去那樣定期的讓注意力從這些事情轉移。 Time marches on, or limps, but Life is gone. There’s no more Money. The print editions of their former sister publications Entertainment Weekly and InStyle, which once frothed with profit, stopped publishing in February. It’s been au revoir to Saveur and Marie Claire; shrouds for Playboy, Paper and O. (As I type this, people are tweeting about The Believer being bought by a sex-toy site.) 「時代」雜誌還在前進，或說蹣跚前行，但「生活」雜誌已經逝去。「金錢」雜誌沒了。它們以前的姊妹刊物「娛樂周刊」和「InStyle」印刷版曾獲利豐厚，但已在2月停止出版。大家向「Saveur」和「美麗佳人」告別，也讓「花花公子」、「紙」與O雜誌穿上壽衣。（就在我撰寫此文時，人們在推特上說「The Believer」被一個情趣用品網站收購了。) Two recent books — “Dilettante,” by Dana Brown, a longtime editor at Vanity Fair, and a new biography of Anna Wintour, by Amy Odell, formerly of cosmopolitan.com — are graveyards of dead or zombie titles that were once glowing hives of human whim. 最近出版的兩本書，「浮華世界」資深編輯達納．布朗的「Dilettante」及柯夢波丹前成員艾咪．歐德爾的安娜溫圖新傳記，有如亡者的墓地，或曾是人類奇想的光輝巢穴冠上了殭屍名號。 “There were so many magazines in 1994,” Brown writes. “So many new magazines, and so many great magazines. All the young talent of the moment was eschewing other industries and flocking to the business. It was the coolest place to be.” 布朗寫道：「1994年有很多雜誌。很多新雜誌，很多很棒的雜誌。當時所有年輕人才避開了其他行業，湧向這個行業。那是最酷的。」 Then suddenly the coldest. On the big fancy cruise ship that Brown had just boarded — Vanity Fair, where he’d been beckoned by Graydon Carter while a barback at the restaurant 44 — he and so many others then could only see the tip of an enormous iceberg they were about to hit: the internet. Smartphones, little self-edited monster magazines that will not rest until their owners die, were on the horizon. These may have looked like life rafts, but they were torpedo boats. 然後突然變成最冰冷的地方。布朗在44號餐廳吧檯用餐時，被總編輯卡特招攬，剛登上有如大型豪華郵輪的「浮華世界」，但他跟其他許多人只能看到他們即將撞上的巨大冰山一角：網路。智慧手機這種自我編輯、直到擁有者死去才會停止的小怪物雜誌也即將來臨。這些東西可能看起來像是救生艇，但它們其實是魚雷艦。 Every year, the American Society of Magazine Editors issues a handsome award, a brutalist-looking elephant called the Ellie, modeled after an Alexander Calder elephant sculpture. Any writer would be proud to have it on the mantelpiece. 每年，美國雜誌編輯協會都會頒發一項大獎，這是一頭野獸派風格、名叫「艾利」的大象獎座，模仿考爾德大象雕塑設計而成。作家都以把它放在壁爐上為榮。 The history of modern American literature is braided together with its magazines. The future can feel like a lot of loose threads, waving in the wind. 現代美國文學史與它的雜誌彼此交織在一起。未來就像是許多鬆散的線，在風中飄揚。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6379678 Next Article Topic: The Not-So-Glossy Future of Magazines One evening in mid-September, a gaggle of writers and bon vivant editors gathered by the outdoor fireplace and ivy-covered trellis of a West Village tavern. Steak was served, and the toasts lasted late into the night, the revelry trickling out to the nearby sidewalk. 九月中旬的一個夜晚，在西村的一家小酒館，一群作家和喜歡享受生活的編輯們聚集在一個室外壁爐和常春藤覆蓋的格狀架子旁。牛排上桌後，眾人杯觥交錯直到深夜，歡鬧聲流瀉到鄰近的人行道上。 It could have been a scene from the Jazz Age heyday of the Manhattan magazine set — or even the 1990s, when glossy monthlies still soaked up millions of dollars in advertising revenue, and editors in chauffeured town cars told the nation what to wear, what to watch and who to read. 這幕場景可能來自爵士時代曼哈坦雜誌業全盛時期，甚至是90年代，以亮光紙印刷的月刊還是廣告收入淹腳目，編輯們坐在司機駕駛的豪華轎車內，告訴全國該穿些什麼、欣賞什麼、閱讀什麼人的年頭。 This night, however, had an elegiac tinge. The staff of Vanity Fair was saluting the magazine’s longtime editor, Graydon Carter, who had announced that he was departing after a 25-year run. In the back garden of Carter’s restaurant, the Waverly Inn, star writers like James Wolcott and Marie Brenner spoke of their gratitude and grief. 不過，這一晚透著一種悲傷的況味。《浮華世界》的員工正向雜誌的長期總編輯葛雷登．卡特致敬。卡特在任職25年後，宣布即將離職。在卡特自家餐廳「韋佛利餐廳」的後花園中，一些明星作家如詹姆士．沃科特、瑪麗．布倫納都表達了他們的謝意和感傷。 Carter has always had a knack for trends. Within two weeks, three other prominent editors — from Time, Elle and Glamour — announced that they, too, would be stepping down. Another titan of the industry, Jann S. Wenner, said he planned to sell his controlling stake in Rolling Stone after a half-century. 卡特一向走在趨勢前端。不出兩星期，又有3位知名雜誌總編，分別是《時代》、《ELLE她》、《魅力》的總編也宣布準備下台。另一個業界巨頭，《滾石》創刊人詹恩．溫納則表示，打算出售他在《滾石》已保有半個世紀的控制性持股。 Suddenly, it seemed, long-standing predictions about t

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 即刻加入15Mins通勤學英語直播室，每週一9pm等你來說英文 : https://15minsengcafe.pse.is/46hm8k 摘取文章： https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4832353; https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4818874 ChatGPT launches boom in AI-written e-books on Amazon Using the AI software, which can generate blocks of text from simple prompts, Schickler created a 30-page illustrated children’s e-book in a matter of hours, offering it for sale in January through Amazon.com Inc's AMZN.O self-publishing unit. 使用可以從簡單提示產生文本塊的人工智慧軟件，Schickler在幾個小時內創作了一本30頁的插圖兒童電子書，並於一月份通過亞馬遜公司的自助出版單位出售。 In the edition, Sammy the Squirrel, crudely rendered also using AI, learns from his forest friends about saving money after happening upon a gold coin. He crafts an acorn-shaped piggy bank, invests in an acorn trading business and hopes to one day buy an acorn grinding stone. 在這個繪本中，使用AI繪圖的Sammy松鼠，在遇到一枚金幣後向他的森林朋友學習儲蓄。他製作了一個橡子形狀的存錢罐，投資於橡子交易業務，希望有一天能買下一個橡子研磨石。 "The Wise Little Squirrel: A Tale of Saving and Investing," available in the Amazon Kindle store for $2.99 - or $9.99 for a printed version - has netted Schickler less than $100, he said. While that may not sound like much, it is enough to inspire him to compose other books using the software. 他表示，“聰明小松鼠：關於儲蓄和投資的故事”在亞馬遜Kindle商店售價為2.99美元，印刷版本售價為9.99美元，他所獲得的收益不到100美元。儘管這聽起來不算多，但這已足以激發他使用這種軟件創作其他書籍的靈感。 Taiwan defeats the Netherlands 9-5 at the World Baseball Classic The Dutch team established an early lead, but Taiwan took the score to 1-1, CNAreported. From there, Taiwan fortified its position and never looked back, reaching 5-1 by the bottom of the second inning. 荷蘭隊一開始取得領先優勢，但根據中央社報導，台灣追平比數為1比1。從那時起，台灣就鞏固了自己的位置，並且在第二局下半場以5比1領先。 The Netherlands clawed back to 5-2 at the top of the third inning but soon faced a renewed effort by Team Taiwan, with the inning ending at 7-2 in favor of the hosts. Chen Chieh-hsien (陳傑憲) took the team’s lead up to 8-2 in the fourth inning. 荷蘭隊在第三局上半場反撲至5比2，但隨即面臨台灣隊的再度努力，最終以7比2結束該局，主場優勢明顯。陳傑憲在第四局將台灣隊的領先優勢擴大至8比2。 The score did not change again until the eighth inning, when Juremi Profar and Wladimir Balentien helped the Dutch team reach 8-4. However, before the end of the inning, Taiwan’s Lin Li (林立) added a point, with the Dutch making a last desperate effort to reach 9-5. 比數一直保持不變，直到第八局，Juremi Profar和Wladimir Balentien幫助荷蘭隊追至8比4。然而，在該局結束前，台灣的林立加入了一分，荷蘭隊最後拼盡全力，以9比5落敗。 The Dutch team had come out on top of Pool A by beating Cuba 4-2 and Panama 3-1, while Taiwan lost to Panama 12-5 before defeating Italy 11-7, holding second place in the pool tied with the Italian team. 荷蘭隊通過以4比2擊敗古巴和以3比1擊敗巴拿馬，脫穎而出成為A組的領頭羊，而台灣隊在以12比5輸給巴拿馬之後，以11比7擊敗義大利，與義大利隊並列小組第二。

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K536: About Germany - Germany wants to reuse data centers’heat. No one is buying it Germany wants to force its power-hungry data centers to harness excess heat for warming residential homes — an effort which the industry warns is likely to fall flat. 德國希望強制能源用量大的數據中心，善用其多餘熱能為住宅提供暖氣，但產業界警告，這項努力可能失敗。 While in theory an innovative way to reduce the industry’s immense carbon footprint, experts have pointed to a flaw in the government’s proposal: potential recipients of waste heat are not being compelled to take it. 儘管在理論上這是減少產業龐大碳足跡的創新方法，但專家指出，政府這項提案有瑕疵：多餘熱能的潛在接受者並非一定得採用。 “The challenge here is finding someone who can use that heat economically, ”according to Ralph Hintemann, senior researcher at the data center lobby group Borderstep. 根據數據中心遊說團體「邊境組織」高級研究員拉夫‧興特曼說法，「此事的挑戰在於，找到能節約使用這些熱能的人」。 The energy efficiency law being prepared by the government aims to save some 500 terawatt-hours of energy by 2030. 政府正在籌備的這項能源效率法，目標是要在2030年前省下約500兆瓦時的能源。 Next Article German ballet director suspended over feces attack on critic 德國芭蕾舞導演因糞便攻擊評論家而被停職 A German newspaper critic had animal feces smeared on her face in the city of Hannover by a ballet director who apparently took offense at a review she wrote. 一名德國報紙評論家在漢諾威市被一名芭蕾舞導演用動物糞便塗抹在她的臉上，該芭蕾舞導演顯然對她寫的評論感到生氣。 The Hannover state opera house apologized for the incident and said Monday that it was suspending ballet director Marco Goecke with immediate effect. 漢諾威國家歌劇院為此事件道歉，並於週一表示，將立即解除芭蕾舞團導演馬爾科·戈克的職務。 The daily Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung reported that a furious Goecke approached its dance critic, Wiebke Huester, during the interval of a premiere at Hannover’s opera house on Saturday and asked what she was doing there. It said that the two didn’t know each other personally. 《法蘭克福廣訊報》日報報導說，週六在漢諾威歌劇院舉行的首演中場休息時段，憤怒的戈克走近了該報舞蹈評論家維布克·休斯特，問她在那裡做什麼。據說兩人彼此不認識。 He then pulled out a paper bag with animal feces and smeared her face with the contents before making off through a packed theater foyer, the newspaper said. Huester identified the substance as dog feces and said she had filed a criminal complaint, German news agency dpa reported. 該報稱，他隨後拿出一個裝有動物糞便的紙袋，將裡面的東西塗在她臉上，然後穿過擁擠的劇院門廳離開。據《德新社》 報導，休斯特鑑定該物質為狗糞，並表示她已提起刑事訴訟。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1568485 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1568054

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K535: About the US - Seattle schools sue tech giants over social media harm The public school district in Seattle has filed a novel lawsuit against the tech giants behind TikTok, Instagram, Facebook, YouTube and Snapchat, seeking to hold them accountable for the mental health crisis among youth. 西雅圖的公立學區對TikTok、Instagram、臉書（Facebook）、YouTube和Snapchat背後的科技巨頭提出一項新的訴訟，試圖讓它們對青少年的心理健康危機負責。 Seattle Public Schools filed the lawsuit Friday in U.S. District Court. The 91-page complaint says the social media companies have created a public nuisance by targeting their products to children. 西雅圖公立學校週五在美國地方法院提起訴訟。這份長達91頁的訴狀指稱，這些社群媒體公司將旗下產品鎖定兒少，已造成公害。 It blames them for worsening mental health and behavioral disorders including anxiety, depression, disordered eating and cyberbullying; making it more difficult to educate students; and forcing schools to take steps such as hiring additional mental health professionals, developing lesson plans about the effects of social media, and providing additional training to teachers. 訴狀指控它們導致（兒少）心理健康和行為障礙惡化，包括焦慮、憂鬱、飲食失調和網路霸凌，使得教育學生變得更加困難，迫使學校採取相關措施，例如雇用更多心理健康專業人員、制定有關社群媒體影響的課程計畫，以及為教師提供額外培訓。 Next Article Massachusetts woman accused of assaulting officers with swarm of angry bees （釋放狂暴蜜蜂襲警 麻薩諸塞州女子挨告） Rorie Woods, a 55-year-old professional beekeeper from Massachusetts, stands accused of using a swarm of bees as a dangerous weapon while deputies were trying to serve an eviction notice. 麻薩諸塞州55歲專業蜂農羅莉‧伍茲，在縣警準備執行驅逐令時，把一大群蜜蜂當成對付警察的危險武器，因而遭到控罪。 The incident unfolded when Woods drove a SUV to the home in Longmeadow, towing a stack of beehives. At arriving, she exited the vehicle and tried to open the lids to unleash the bees. 這起事件發生在伍茲開著一台休旅車、後頭拖著一堆蜂箱前往朗梅多的一戶住宅時。抵達後，她下車試圖打開蓋子放出蜜蜂。 A sheriff’s deputy tried to stop her, but as the bees started getting out and circling the area, he pulled back. Woods then smashed the lid of one hive, agitating the bees. They swarmed the area, stinging several officers and bystanders who were nearby. 一名縣警試圖阻止她，但因蜜蜂開始飛出並四處盤旋，他不敢上前。伍茲之後砸開其中一個蜂箱的蓋子，激怒這些蜜蜂，一大群蜜蜂衝出，叮咬多名警員和附近的路人。 Meanwhile Woods put on a professional beekeeper suit to protect herself. 與此同時，伍茲穿上專業的蜂農服裝保護自己。 The residence belonged to a man who had been litigating against his removal for years, garnering support of anti-eviction activists, including Woods. 這個住所住著一名多年來持續就驅逐令進行爭訟的男子，此事受到反驅逐志工的支持，包括伍茲。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1571057

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments Summary: 討論文章: https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4825377 For the past few months, Taiwan is struggling with it egg shortage that's now crossed over to chicken wings. Due to the culling policy of Avian Flu, chicken are being culled at an alarming rate and chicks are not grown fast enough. In this episode, Angel and I talk about what is driving the netizens in Taiwan crazy. 留言告訴麥當勞剔除的餐點裡，有那個是你最不能接受的! Comment down below! Vocabulary: 1. Remove v. 去除/拿走/剔除 Mcdonald's Taiwan removed some of their menu items. 麥當勞台灣剔除了菜單上部分品項。 2. Discontinue v. 停產/停止 Companies would discontinue their product or services when they can't turn a profit anymore. 當企業無法賺取利潤通常他們會停產或停止提供服務。 3. Urban myth n. 都市傳說 It's an urban myth that Evian mineral water would make your hair fall off. Evian礦泉水會讓你掉頭髮是個都市傳說。 更多Vocab Podcast節目: https://www.15mins.today/vocab 歡迎主題投稿/意見回覆 : [email protected] 商業合作/贊助來信：[email protected]

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K534: Earthquakes Destroy. People Rebuild. She wanted to retrieve her medicine, and if memory serves all these years later, also a hairbrush and a photograph from her apartment. 她想拿回她的藥，若經過這麼多年沒記錯的話，還想拿回一把梳子跟她公寓裡的一張照片。 It was in 2009, a couple of days after an earthquake flattened L’Aquila, the capital of Abruzzo, in central Italy. Authorities had closed the city to residents, but the woman and her sister had sneaked in. I found her leaning on a cane in a broken, empty plaza staring up at a midcentury building that the quake had somehow sheared horizontally so that it looked like a pot with its lid askew. 那是在2009年，義大利中部阿布魯佐大區首府拉奎拉遭地震夷成平地的幾天後。當局已禁止居民進入該城，但這位婦女跟她妹妹偷溜進去。我發現，她站在一個破敗、空曠的廣場上，拄著一根拐杖盯著一座上世紀中葉的建築物，地震不知以何種方式水平橫切該建築物，看起來就像一個蓋子歪掉的鍋子。 She asked for help. 她尋求援助。 From afar, we measure catastrophes like the calamity in Turkey and Syria by totaling the numbers of dead and buildings destroyed. Reports describe a spectacularly wide disaster zone, recovery efforts that are too slow, leaving untold hundreds and possibly thousands of victims still buried, alive and dead, under the rubble — and hundreds of thousands more in the cold without homes, food, drinking water or medical supplies. 從遠處看，我們透過罹難人數和建築物被摧毀總數，衡量像土耳其和敘利亞的災難。有報導描述一個驚人的廣大災區，復原工作過於緩慢，數百名甚至數千名受害者恐仍被埋在廢墟下，生死未卜，還有數十萬人在寒冷環境中生活，沒有房子、食物、飲用水或醫療用品。 It is too much to process, the loss of lives and history. The tiny Jewish community in Antakya, in central Turkey, dates back 2,500 years. The head of the community and his wife both died in the quake. The city’s synagogue is now gone. 生命和歷史的逝去讓人難以接受。土耳其中部安塔基亞的小猶太社區可追溯至2500年前。社區負責人和他的妻子都在地震中喪生。這座城市的猶太教堂現已不復存在。 The Habibi Neccar Mosque collapsed, too. The earthquake’s destruction was ecumenical. The mosque dates back to 638. It was a church and a mosque, depending on who ruled the city. Over the centuries, authority passed from the caliphs to the Byzantines, who succumbed to Seljuks, who were ousted by the Crusaders, who ceded to Mamluks, who were replaced by Ottomans, and eventually Antakya was annexed by Turkey. The quake erased whole swathes of history. 哈比卜內卡清真寺也倒塌了。地震造成廣泛破壞。這座清真寺的歷史可追溯至公元638年。它是一座教堂，也是座清真寺，取決於誰統治這座城市。數個世紀以來，權力從哈里發傳到屈服於塞爾柱人的拜占庭，十字軍驅逐塞爾柱人後將城市割讓給馬木留克人，馬木留克人則被鄂圖曼人取代，最終安塔基亞被土耳其併吞。地震則抹去了整個歷史。 The biblical city of Antioch, Antakya is also where the word “Christian” was supposedly first used. The Apostle Peter led the church there before establishing a church in Rome. Paul preached in Antioch. The quake collapsed the St. Paul Orthodox Church, as well. 安塔基亞是聖經中的安提阿城，據說也是「基督徒」一詞首次被使用的地方。使徒彼得建立羅馬教會以前，曾在當地帶領基督教。保羅也在安提阿傳道。地震也使得聖保羅東正教教堂倒塌。 L’Aquila, like Antakya, lies in a notorious earthquake zone. A quake in L’Aquila in 1349 killed 800 residents; another in 1703 killed more than 3,000, prompting Pope Clement XI to send priests and nuns freed of their celibacy to repopulate the city. 拉奎拉和安塔基亞一樣，位在惡名昭彰的地震帶上。拉奎拉1349年的一場地震，造成800個居民喪生，1703年的另一場地震導致3000多人死亡，促使教宗克勉十一世派遣不再守貞的神父和修女，提供這座城市新生命。 You may rightly ask about the logic of rebuilding time and again in these risky places. But logic is not the point. 你可能會問，在這些危險地方一次又一次重建的邏輯為何，但邏輯並不是重點。 Cities are only nominally bricks and mortar, after all. To residents they are repositories of a hairbrush and a photograph — collective threads of a social fabric that, over time, weave together a life, a family, a history, a neighborhood, a community. 城市畢竟只是表面上的實體建築。對居民來說，它們是一把梳子和一張照片的倉庫，一個社會結構的集體線索，將一個生活、一個家庭、一段歷史、一個鄰居和一個社區逐漸編織在一起。 The city was still a shambles. But it was home. 這座城市仍然一片狼藉，但它是家。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6994223

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K533: At the Oscar Nominees Luncheon, a Crowd in Cruise Control For the privileged few embarking on an Oscar campaign, the path to a nomination asks you to hobnob with so many of the same people that over the course of many months, your competitors can begin to feel like classmates. 對於有幸出席奧斯卡活動的佼佼者來說，入圍之路得先與數不清的同行打交道，數個月下來，原本的競爭者可能開始感覺像同學了。 But on Monday afternoon, at a luncheon held in Beverly Hills, California, for this year’s Oscar nominees, the arrival of a new student caused quite a stir. 但周一下午在加州比佛利希爾頓酒店為今年奧斯卡入圍者舉行的午宴上，一名前來報到的新生引發轟動。 That would be Tom Cruise, nominated this year as a producer of the megahit best picture contender “Top Gun: Maverick.” He was among the first notable names to walk into the ballroom of the Beverly Hilton. The 60-year-old star had sat out both the Golden Globes and the Critics Choice Awards this season, so many of his fellow nominees were encountering him for the first time. Before long, the ballroom had turned into a massive meet-and-greet. 他是湯姆克魯斯，入圍今年最佳影片的熱門大片「捍衛戰士：獨行俠」製片人之一。他是最先踏入比佛利希爾頓會場的幾位名人之一。這名60歲巨星缺席了本季的金球獎及美國影評人獎，很多一起入圍的人是首次見到他。午宴不久後就變成一場大型見面會。 “I love you, I love you, oh, my God!” said “Everything Everywhere All at Once” star Ke Huy Quan, who hopped in place, exclaiming, “I want a picture with this man!” before seizing a selfie with Cruise. Director Guillermo del Toro went over for an embrace, as did nominated actors Brendan Fraser, Angela Bassett and Michelle Williams. Cruise even posed for pictures with Steven Spielberg, a once-frequent collaborator whom the star has not been publicly photographed with in over a decade. 「我愛你，我愛你，喔我的天！」「媽的多重宇宙」演員關繼威興奮得跳不停，大喊「我要跟這男人合照」然後與湯姆克魯斯自拍。導演吉勒摩戴托羅跑去跟湯姆克魯斯擁抱，入圍演員獎項的布蘭登費雪、安琪拉貝瑟、蜜雪兒威廉絲也一樣。湯姆克魯斯甚至與過去常合作、但已逾十年未公開同框的導演史蒂芬史匹柏合影。 The nominees luncheon is supposed to be an egalitarian affair where big stars and behind-the-scenes technicians are on equal footing, but there was no mistaking Cruise as the ballroom’s top dog: He had the gravitational pull of the sun and its burnt-orange countenance, too. 奧斯卡入圍午宴本該是一場幕前明星與幕後技術人員以平等身分相見的聚會，但湯姆克魯斯無疑是宴會廳裡的頭號人物：他自帶太陽般的引力，也擁有如烈日煥發的焦橙臉龐。 Still, simply making it to Cruise took some time: In the schmoozy hour before lunch was served, he was so mobbed by his fellow nominees that he was hardly able to move more than a few feet. I watched for a while as “Elvis” star Austin Butler drifted with slow, inexorable determination toward Cruise, who finally pulled the younger man toward him by clamping a hand on his shoulder like a stapler. For several minutes, they were locked in such a tight bro-embrace that it was impossible to discern what they were talking about. 單單要接近湯姆克魯斯就得花上不少時間：在用餐前的交流時間，入圍者們將他團團圍住，他幾乎無法移動幾步。我看著飾演「貓王」的明星奧斯汀巴特勒緩慢卻堅定地朝他一步步走去，而湯姆克魯斯最終伸出手，像支釘書機一樣一把按在這年輕人的臂膀上，將他拉向自己。有好幾分鐘時間，他們像兄弟一般緊緊擁抱，兩人到底說了些什麼，其他人根本不可能得知。 So instead, I made my way to “Top Gun: Maverick” producer Jerry Bruckheimer, who observed the scene serenely just a few feet away. “It’s my first time at the luncheon,” said the newly nominated producer, who’s better known for making explosive action movies than Oscar fare. “After 50 years in the business, I finally get here.” 我見狀後移動到「捍衛戰士：獨行俠」另一製片傑瑞布洛克海默身邊，他在幾英尺外平靜的看著這一幕。「這是我第一次參加奧斯卡午宴」，這位剛入圍的製片主要以激烈的動作片聞名，而非奧斯卡電影，「在這一行打滾五十年後，我終於來到這兒了」。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/7008044

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments Topic: Sellout Culture Is a Problem for Pro Golf Even if you don’t play or follow golf — which I don’t — you’re probably aware of the controversy now engulfing the game. A number of the world’s top-ranked pro players, notably Phil Mickelson, made extremely lucrative deals to play in a new tour, the LIV Golf International Series, sponsored by Saudi Arabia. The PGA Tour, which has traditionally dominated the sport, responded by suspending 17 of these players. 即便不打或不追高球新聞—我也沒追—你也可能知道現在這項運動捲入爭議。一些世界頂級職業球員，尤其是米克森，達成極其有利可圖的交易參加沙烏地阿拉伯贊助的新巡迴賽，即LIV高球國際系列賽。傳統上主導這項運動的職業高球美巡賽（PGA Tour）對此做出回應，將其中17名球員禁賽。 The Saudis are obviously engaged in reputation-laundering — greenswashing? — in an attempt to make people forget about the atrocities their regime has perpetrated. It’s less clear what motivated the PGA. Did it consider the LIV series flawed, not a proper golf tour? Was it attempting to squash competition? Or was the problem with the LIV series’ sponsors? 沙國顯然在清洗名聲—是在「漂白」嗎？試圖讓人們忘記他們政權所犯下的暴行。目前還不太清楚什麼原因驅使PGA這樣做。它是否認為LIV系列賽有缺陷，不是個像樣的高球巡迴賽？它會不會是在試圖壓制競爭嗎？或是LIV系列賽贊助者的問題？ PGA attendees surveyed by ProGolf weekly were in no doubt: An overwhelming majority attributed Mickelson’s exclusion to “media/cancel culture.” And I hope they’re right. I mean, if getting paid big bucks to provide favorable PR to a regime that deals with critical journalists by killing them and dismembering them with a bone saw doesn’t warrant cancellation, what does? And yet Mickelson and others were willing to provide that PR. 接受《ProGolf》周刊調查的PGA與會者均無疑問，絕大多數將米克森遭剔除歸因於「媒體/取消文化」。我希望他們是對的。我的意思是，拿大錢幫一個政權提供公關服務，而這個政權把批評他們的記者殺掉還肢解，如果這不是一個取消的正當理由，那什麼才是？而米克森和其他人卻願意提供這種公關服務。 So if you ask me, the real story here isn’t that the PGA may (or may not) have found a line it won’t cross. It is that so many members of the American elite evidently have no such lines. 所以，若你問我，情況並非PGA可能（或可能沒有）找到一條不會跨越的線，而是這個美國菁英組織許多成員明顯沒有這樣的界線。 What explains the rise of sellout culture? Tax cuts may have played a role: Selling your soul becomes more attractive when you get to keep more of the proceeds. Soaring income inequality may inspire envy, a desire to keep up with the super-elite. And there is surely a process of normalization: Everyone else is selling out, so why shouldn’t I join the party? 如何解釋出賣文化興起？減稅可能起到一定作用：當你能保留更多收益時，出賣你的靈魂就變得更有吸引力。日益嚴重的收入不平等可能會引發嫉妒，讓人渴望跟超級菁英攀比。當然，這是一個正常過程：其他人都在出賣，那我為何不入群呢？ Kids used to look up to public figures, sports stars in particular, as role models. Do they still? Can they, given what public figures will do if the checks are big enough? 以前孩子們常把受人尊敬的公眾人物作為榜樣，尤其是體育明星。他們還會嗎？考慮到支票夠大時公眾人物竟然這樣做，他們還能嗎？Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6413966 Next Article Topic: Why Are There More Successful Older Golfers Today? From the 18th fairway in the final group of the British Open in 2009, Tom Watson, the five-time Open champion, hit a shot that flew right at the pin. For a moment, it looked like Watson, then age 59, would win the tournament for a record sixth time and become the oldest player to win a major championship. 2009年英國公開賽最後一組第18洞的球道上，五屆冠軍華森一揮直飛旗桿。一時間，當時59歲的華森似乎將贏得創紀錄的第六座英國公開賽冠軍，並成為最年長的四大賽冠軍。 A firm bounce sent the ball off the back of the green, and Watson needed three more shots to get the ball into the hole. That dropped him into a tie for first. In the four-hole playoff, he ran out of gas and lost by six shots. 小白球強力彈跳後滾出果嶺後方，華森又花了三桿才把球送進洞裡。這使他落到並列領先。四洞延長賽，他精力耗盡，最後輸六桿。 A decade ago, the idea of an older golfer contending in, let alone winning, a major championship was something few considered. That was still the time when most golfers petered out in their mid-40s and kicked around the golf world before having a brief resurgence on the Champions Tour when they turned 50. 10年前，很少人料想得到年長的高球選手會參加四大賽，遑論拿冠軍。當時，大多數高球選手在45歲左右開始淡出，到滿50歲參加「冠軍」（譯註：長春）巡迴賽散發短暫餘暉前，其間在高球界四處晃晃。 Leading these middle-age mavericks is Phil Mickelson, 51, won the PGA Championship in May. He beat Brooks Koepka, a four-time major winner, and Louis Oosthuizen, the 2010 British Open champion, who are both in their 30s. 這些不服老的中年高球選手領導人物是剛滿51歲的米克森，他在今年5月贏得PGA錦標賽冠軍。擊敗了都是30多歲的四屆四大賽冠軍得主科普卡與2010年英國公開賽冠軍歐蘇森。 “All these guys have taken a new approach,” said Dave Phillips, co-founder of the Titleist Performance Institute, which focuses on golf and fitness. “There’s a lot of money out there. They realize they can still compete with the younger guys, but they need to spend more time on their body and what they fuel their body with.” 高球與健身專門機構「冠軍競技表現研究所」共同創辦人戴維．菲利普斯說：「這些人都採取一種新方法。比賽獎金很高。他們意識到自己仍可跟年輕人競爭，只是需要花更多時間在身體及強化身體的物質上面。」 Phillips said what Mickelson and the others were doing provided lessons for older golfers. “It’s not strength, but the recovery and the downtime that matter,” he said. “It’s letting your body recover. Everyone wants to get fitter, stronger, faster. They’re upset when they don’t see the results. But what they’re doing is fatiguing to the body more so than a round of golf.” 菲利普斯說，米克森和其他人的作為，幫年

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 即刻加入15Mins通勤學英語直播室，每週一9pm等你來說英文 : https://15minsengcafe.pse.is/46hm8k 1. Acid test– 酸值測試 Meaning: A decisive test where the findings show the worth or quality of something. Example: “This beta test will be the acid test needed for our project to receive funding.” 2. The problem is between the keyboard and the chair- 問題是在鍵盤與椅子中間 Meaning: The problem was caused by the fault of the user. Also seen as the acronym PICNIC: Problem In Chair Not In Computer Example: “The glitch in that game seems to be a problem between the keyboard and the chair.” 3. Fire on all cylinders- 點燃全汽缸 Meaning: The system is working as well as it can. Example: “Our network is firing on all cylinders after the update.” 4. Get your wires crossed- 線打結了 Meaning: People misunderstanding each other when making plans or giving directions. Example: “We must have gotten our wires crossed the other day because he wasn’t at the meeting at noon as planned.” 5. Pull the plug- 拔插頭 Meaning: To end a project. Example: “It looks like time to pull the plug on this coding class.” 練習時間: 請使用二到三個慣用語來分享自身小故事 Please think of two to three scenarios where you can use these idioms or share a story using the idioms.

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K532: About Animals - Dogs in costumes take over at Rio Carnival street party As Rio de Janeiro kicked off its Carnival on Saturday, about 100 dogs barked and wagged their tails to the tune of samba music as they paraded in front of pet lovers in a canine costume competition. 里約熱內盧週六揭開狂歡節序幕，將近100隻狗兒在犬類服裝比賽的寵物愛好者面前遊行，隨著森巴音樂曲調吠叫和搖尾巴。 The “Blocao” — a mixture of “bloco” which refers to Carnival street parties and “cao,” or dog in Portuguese — brought about 300 people to Rio’s Barra da Tijuca. Dog costumes ranged from fairies, and superheroes to clowns and cartoon characters. 「狗狗狂歡節街頭派對」（Blocao）——「bloco」（指狂歡節街頭派對）和「cao」（葡萄牙語的狗）的混合體——把將近300人帶到了里約熱內盧的巴拉達蒂茹卡。狗狗的服裝從仙女、超級英雄到小丑和卡通人物都有。 Edson Chianca, 36, brought his 12-year-old Saori to the parade in a Minnie Mouse costume. He dressed the same way so the pair matched. 36歲的埃德森．奇安卡帶著他12歲的「沙織」穿著米妮老鼠的服裝參加了遊行。他穿得一樣，所以這對很匹配。 Marco Antonio Vieira, the organizer of Blocao, said he has no intention of humanizing pets with the pet parade and the contest that picks the top five best dressed dogs. 「狗狗狂歡節街頭派對」組織者馬爾科．安東尼奧．維埃拉表示，他無意藉由寵物遊行和比賽選出前五名最佳穿著狗狗，來使寵物人性化。 “Thirty years ago they lived in our backyard, now they live on our beds. It is good for them to be with the owner. When the dog sees the owner happy, he is happy too,” Vieira said. 維埃拉說，「30年前牠們住在我們的後院，現在牠們在我們的床上生活。和主人在一起，對牠們有好處。當狗看到主人開心時，牠也會開心。」 Next Article Herd the news? Wild boar piglet adopted by cows 你「豬」道嗎？小野豬被牛群收養 A cow herd in the central German community of Brevoerde has adopted a lone wild boar piglet. 德國中部布雷弗爾德村的一個牛群，收養了一隻落單的野豬幼崽。 Farmer Friedrich Stapel told the dpa news agency that it had likely lost its group when they crossed a nearby river. 農夫弗里德里希‧斯塔佩爾向「德新社」表示，這隻小野豬可能是在橫渡附近一條溪流時，和其他野豬失散。 Stapel said while he knows what extensive damage wild boars can cause, he can’t bring himself to chase the animal away. 斯塔佩爾說，雖然他知道野豬可能帶來的巨大損害，但他不忍心把牠趕走。 The local hunter has been told not to shoot the piglet — nicknamed Frieda — and in winter Stapel plans to put it in the shed with the mother cows. 當地獵人已被告知不要射殺這隻暱稱弗里達的小豬，斯塔佩爾還準備在冬天來的時候，讓小豬和牛媽媽們一起待在牛棚。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1568956 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1568602

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K531: About Tech - Crab and lobster shells could be used to make renewable batteries The researchers in Maryland have developed batteries that use a product derived from crustacean shells to store energy. 美國馬里蘭州科學家已經開發出一種電池，它是從甲殼動物的殼提取用於儲存能源的物質製成。 As the world transitions towards deploying green energy solutions and electric vehicles, the batteries being used for such technology also need to be eco-friendly. 當世界向使用綠色能源解決方案和電動汽車過渡時，這種科技使用的電池也必須是環保的。 Crustaceans have exoskeletons made of cells that contain chitin, a kind of polysaccharide that makes their shells hard. 甲殼類動物的外骨骼由含有甲殼素的細胞組成，這是一種讓牠們外殼堅硬的多醣。 Through chemical processing and adding acetic acid aqueous solution, chitin can ultimately be synthesised into a firm gel membrane and used as an electrolyte for a battery. 透過化學加工並加入醋酸水溶液，甲殼素最終可以被合成凝膠膜，作為電池的電解質。 By combining this chitosan electrolyte with zinc, a naturally occurring metal increasingly used to make batteries that are cheap and safe, scientists were able to create a renewable battery. 藉由將這種甲殼素電解質和鋅混和，科學家得以製造再生電池。鋅是一種日漸用於製作電池使之便宜且安全的天然金屬。 Next Article New stick-on ‘sonar’ device lets you watch your own heart beat 新黏貼聲納裝置讓你監測自己的心跳 Imagine having a watch that could live-stream your heart as it beats in your chest. 想像當心臟在胸口跳動時，擁有一支可以直播心跳的手錶。 Researchers just unveiled a wearable ultrasound patch — something like a Band-Aid with sonar. 研究人員剛推出一個穿戴式的超音波貼片，它就像是有著聲納的OK蹦。 This stick-on device offers a flexible way to see deep inside the body. Ultrasound maps tissues and fluids by recording how sound waves bounce off of them. 這個黏貼裝置提供一個探測身體深處的彈性方法。超音波透過紀錄聲波如何從組織和血液上反彈，來繪製它們。 The new patch can work for up to 48 hours straight — even while you’re moving around a lot, like when you play a sport. 這款新貼片可以連續使用長達48小時，即便是在遊走移動的情況下，例如運動。 In many poorer countries, access to hospitals — and their high-power imaging machines — can be limited. 在許多較貧困的國家，就醫並取得高功率成像機器的機會可能有限。 But the new device “has a huge potential” to aid people in these parts of the world, Aparna Singh, a biomedical engineer at Columbia University said. 但是哥倫比亞大學生物醫學工程師阿帕娜．辛格表示，這個新的裝置擁有巨大的潛能，能夠幫助世界上這些地區的民眾。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1569161 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1566618

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments Summary: 討論文章: https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4769567 Taiwan's Pizzahut is well known for its odd, fusion, seasonal menus in the recent years. In this episode, Angel and I go through the ingredients and take on the naming challenge for each new pizza flavors. Tell us down below, which ones you have tried!歡迎投稿有趣的主題給醬老師與Angel老師 Comment down below! Vocabulary: 1. Red rice yeast n. 紅糟 Red rice yeast ba-wan is a famous dish from Hsinchu. 紅糟肉圓是來自新竹的名菜。 2. Filthy rich idiom. 非常富有 People who buys luxury goods all the time are filthy rich. 常買精品的人都是非常有錢。 3. CCR (Cross-Culture Romance) n. 跨文化戀情 The fusion of east and west in a pizza is like CCR. 東西合璧的比薩就像跨文化戀情一樣。 更多Vocab Podcast節目: https://www.15mins.today/vocab 歡迎主題投稿/意見回覆 : [email protected] 商業合作/贊助來信：[email protected]

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K530: After Gutting Youth Services, Can U.K. Cut Youth Crime? The Marcus Lipton Youth Club is the last dedicated youth center still standing in its pocket of south London. 馬可斯．利普頓青年俱樂部是倫敦南部最後一個專門的青年中心，至今仍屹立。 But it is teetering. Nearly half of London’s youth centers have closed in the past decade as Britain has cut money for youth services, as well as for welfare, schools and drug and alcohol treatment, according to the most recent available data. Marcus Lipton used to count on hundreds of thousands of pounds a year in government funding. Now, it gets nearly zero. 但它正搖搖欲墜。根據最新數據，由於英國削減青年服務，以及福利、學校和毒品與酒精治療的資金，過去十年倫敦有將近一半青年中心關閉。馬可斯．利普頓過去仰賴政府每年數十萬英鎊補助，如今幾乎為零。 “Just look around you,” said Ira Campbell, 55, the manager of the club, which offers counseling, warm meals and sports for young people. “This place is a safe haven.” 該俱樂部為青年提供諮詢、熱騰騰餐點跟運動，55歲經理坎伯說：「看看你周圍，這是一個安全避風港。」 Marcus Lipton lies in the shadow of the Loughborough Estate public housing project, where two of the Conservative government’s longtime priorities — fighting crime and trying to reduce the budget deficit — collide. 馬可斯．利普頓俱樂部正籠罩在拉夫堡莊園公共住宅計畫的陰影下，保守黨政府長期兩大優先施政項目—打擊犯罪跟試圖減少預算赤字，在該計畫有所衝突。 Prime Minister Rishi Sunak is building new prisons and recruiting more police officers as part of his party’s pledge to be tough on crime. He has also proposed a budget that would make deep spending reductions in the coming years, forcing officials to find savings in programs that have already been whittled to the bone during a decade of austerity. 英國首相蘇納克正建造新的監獄，並招募更多警察，這是他的政黨嚴厲打擊犯罪承諾的部分行動。他還提出一項預算計畫，未來幾年將大幅削減支出，迫使官員們在十年撙節政策期間已被嚴重削減的項目再設法省錢。 Budget cuts during that decade, instituted in response to the global financial crisis of 2008, hit the poorest neighborhoods of Britain’s capital particularly hard, according to the Institute for Government, an independent research group in London. Those neighborhoods are also where serious youth violence, like homicide, has risen or remained disproportionately high after austerity, data from the office of London Mayor Sadiq Khan shows. 倫敦獨立研究機構政府研究所指出，為因應2008年全球金融危機，這十年間實施的預算刪減對英國首都最窮困社區的打擊尤為嚴重。根據倫敦市長卡恩辦公室的數據，這些社區也是在撙節開支政策實施後，凶殺案之類嚴重青年暴力事件有所上升或依舊居高不下的地方。 Annual knife violence involving teenage victims in the city increased by nearly 40% to 5,332 in 2019, before the coronavirus pandemic began, from 3,809 in 2012, according to police figures obtained by The New York Times. (There was later a dip in serious youth violence during virus-related lockdowns, most likely because of reduced social contact.) 紐約時報從警方獲得的數據顯示，在新冠病毒大流行開始前的2019年，倫敦市涉及受害者為青少年的持刀暴力事件，從2012年的3809件增加近40%至5332件。（後來在與病毒有關的防疫封鎖期間，嚴重青年暴力事件有所減少，很可能是因為社會接觸減少。） Residents of the Loughborough Estate, already frustrated by sharply rising utility bills and food costs, say that the government would rather pay to lock up young people than spend money on projects that might provide them with positive activities or help their parents to make ends meet. 已對急劇上漲水電費與食物價格感到沮喪的拉夫堡莊園居民們說，政府寧願花錢把年輕人關起來，也不願資助可為他們提供正面活動的計畫，或幫助他們的父母維持生計。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6978804

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K529: Combating Disinformation Wanes at Social Media Giants YouTube, like other social media platforms, spent years expanding its efforts to tackle misinformation after the 2016 election. It hired policy experts and content moderators and invested in more technology to limit the reach of false narratives. Not anymore. 2016年美國大選後，YouTube和其他社群平台一樣，花數年時間擴大其處理錯誤訊息的努力。該公司聘請政策專家與內容審核員，並投資更多技術來限制假論述的傳播。現在沒有了。 Last month, the company, owned by Google, quietly reduced its small team of policy experts in charge of handling misinformation, according to three people with knowledge of the decision. The cuts, part of the reduction of 12,000 employees by Google’s parent company, Alphabet, left only one person in charge of misinformation policy worldwide, one of the people said. 三名知情人士透露，谷歌旗下的這家公司悄悄減少負責處理錯誤訊息的政策專家小組。其中一人表示，這次裁員是谷歌母公司字母削減1.2萬名員工行動的一部分，只留下一個人負責全球錯誤訊息政策。 The cuts reflect a trend across the industry that threatens to undo many of the safeguards that social media platforms put in place in recent years to ban or tamp down on disinformation — like false claims about the COVID-19 pandemic, the Russian war in Ukraine or the integrity of elections around the world. Twitter, under its new owner, Elon Musk, has slashed its staff, while Meta, which owns Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp, has shifted its focus and resources to the immersive world of the metaverse. 裁員反映了整個產業的一種趨勢，恐破壞社群媒體平台近年為禁止或遏制假訊息所實施的許多防護措施，例如有關新冠疫情大流行、俄烏戰爭或世界各地選舉公正性的虛假說法。推特在新老闆馬斯克領導下大幅裁員，擁有臉書、Instagram和WhatsApp的Meta，則將重點和資源轉移至沉浸式的元宇宙世界。 Faced with economic headwinds and political and legal pressure, the social media giants have shown signs that fighting false information online is no longer as high a priority, raising fears among experts who track the issue that it will further erode trust online. 遭逢經濟逆風及政治與司法壓力的這些社群媒體巨頭，已表明打擊網路虛假消息不再是當務之急，讓追蹤此議題的專家擔心，這將進一步削弱網路上的信任。 “I wouldn’t say the war is over, but I think we’ve lost key battles,” said Angelo Carusone, the president of the liberal media watchdog Media Matters for America. After years of efforts, he described a mounting sense of fatigue in the struggle. “I do think we, as a society, have lost the appetite to keep battling. And that means we will lose the war.” 自由派媒體監督機構「美國媒體事務」的卡魯桑表示：「我不會說戰爭結束了，但我認為我們輸掉關鍵戰役。」經過多年努力，他描述這場抗爭中愈來愈強烈的疲勞感。「我的確認為，我們整個社會已失去繼續戰鬥的興趣。這意味我們將輸掉這場戰爭。」 The companies maintain they remain diligent, but the efforts to combat false and misleading information online — which arguably peaked during the COVID pandemic and the 2020 presidential election — have waned at a time when the problem of misinformation remains as pernicious as ever with a proliferation of alternative sites competing for users. 這些公司堅稱他們仍很勤奮，但打擊網路虛假及誤導資訊的行動已有所減弱，這些假訊息在新冠疫情大流行與2020年總統大選期間達到巔峰，隨著替代網站激增且競相爭奪用戶，假訊息問題仍像以往那樣有害。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6994226

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments Topic: Russia's Villages, and Their Culture, Are 'Melting Away' With its winding dirt lanes framed by lilacs, quaint wooden houses and graceful onion-domed church, the tiny farming hamlet of Baruta was once a postcard of Russian bucolic bliss. 俄國西北部普斯科夫區域的巴魯塔小農村曾是俄國田園的幸福象徵，蜿蜒的土路旁盡是丁香、古雅的木屋和優美的洋蔥圓頂教堂。 No longer. More people lie in the tightly packed church cemetery than inhabit the village. Agriculture is slowly withering, too. 此景不再。在擁擠不堪的教堂墓地安息的人，比住在村裡的多。農業也逐步衰退。 With Russia's natural population growth entering an extended period of decline, villages like Baruta are disappearing from across the country’s continental expanse. 由於俄國人口的自然增長進入長期衰退期，像巴魯塔這樣的村落正從廣袤的俄國大陸各地消失。 "We have not had a wedding or a baptism for quite some time — we mostly have funerals," said a resident, Alexander Fyodorov, 59, one of just 17 men left in what was a thriving collective of some 500 farmers. 59歲居民費奧多羅夫說：「我們好一段時間沒有婚禮或洗禮了——多半是喪禮。」他曾是一個約有500農民、蓬勃發展的集體農場的一分子，如今農場只剩下17個男人，他是其中之一。 President Vladimir Putin frequently cites hardy population growth as a pillar of restoring Russia's place atop the global order. There is a pronounced gap, however, between the positive terms in which Putin and his advisers habitually discuss demographic trends and the reality of the numbers. 俄國總統普亭常說，強勁的人口成長是讓俄國重居新全球之首的基礎。不過，普亭與顧問們討論人口趨勢時慣常使用的正面詞語，和真實人口數目差距甚大。 Russians are dying faster than they are being born, demographers said. Given the general hostility toward immigration, the question is to what degree the population of 146 million, including annexed Crimea, might shrink. 人口學者說，俄國人死亡的速度比出生快。在俄國人普遍對移民懷有敵意的情況下，俄國總數1億4600萬（包括兼併來的克里米亞）的人口勢將減少，問題只在減幅的大小。 The number of deaths exceeded the number of births in 2016 by a few thousand, and the prognosis for the years ahead is poor. From 2013-2015, extremely modest natural growth peaked in 2015 with just 32,038 more births than deaths. 去年俄國死亡人數超越出生人數幾千人，未來幾年前景也不樂觀。2013到2015年極微小的人口自然增長在2015年達到高峰，出生數只比死亡數多3萬2038人。 "The statistics and the propaganda are very different things," said Natalya V. Zubarevich, an expert in social and political geography at Moscow State University. 莫斯科國立大學社會與政治地理學專家祖巴列維奇說：「統計數字和宣傳大不相同。」 In terms of population loss, Pskov, which borders Latvia and parts of Estonia, is among the worst hit regions in Russia. The population peaked at around 1.8 million in the 1920s, said Andrei Manakov, a demographer at Pskov State University. It is down to 642,000, and projected to drop to about 513,000 by 2033. 普斯科夫與拉脫維亞和愛沙尼亞部分地區接壤，是俄國人口減少最嚴重的區域之一。普斯科夫國立大學人口學者馬納科夫說，1920年代這裡的人口達到高峰，約180萬。現在降到64萬2千人，料將在2033年前降到大約51萬3千人。 Researchers estimate that out of 8,300 area villages in 1910, 2,000 no longer have permanent residents. 研究人員估計，1910年這裡的8300個地區村落中，2000個不再有常住居民。 Under the most optimistic projections by demographers, Russia’s population by 2050 will stay the same, about 146 million, if immigration from Central Asia — which has also been dropping — balances out low birthrates. Less optimistic figures put the population around 130 million by 2050, and the most pessimistic say fewer than 100 million. 人口學者最樂觀的預測是，如果來自中亞的移民（也正在逐漸減少）能彌補俄國的低出生率，2050年俄國人口會跟現在一樣，大約1億4600萬。較不樂觀的數據是2050年人口約為1億3000萬，最悲觀的是不到1億。Source article: https://paper.udn.com/udnpaper/POH0067/318780/web/ Topic: Russia reaches out to OPEC as Riyadh opens oil taps The COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak in China and its rapid spread has taken its toll on the global economy, driving down demand for oil in the first weeks of 2020. 在中國爆發的武漢肺炎冠狀病毒迅速蔓延，讓全球經濟遭受巨大損失，對石油的需求在二〇二〇年開年數週便降低了。 In response, in the scheduled meeting on March 5-6 in Vienna, Saudi Arabia and other OPEC (Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) states called for OPEC+ to a make drastic cut of 1.5 million barrels per day to reduce supply by a total of 3.6 million barells per day — insisting on a non-OPEC agreement. However, Russia rejected the plan. When the OPEC+ talks collapsed, the OPEC oil cartel scrapped all output limits. A dispute then broke out. 因應此情況，沙烏地阿拉伯與其他石油輸出國組織（OPEC）國家三月五日至六日在維也納所舉行的例行會議中，便要求OPEC+國家每日大幅減產一百五十萬桶，讓石油每日供應總量減少三百六十萬桶，並堅持非屬OPEC之產油國也須共同遵守此協議。但俄羅斯拒絕了此計畫，談判破裂，OPEC這石油壟斷利益集團便取消了所有產量限制，爭端於焉爆發。 Russian oil companies had opposed such cuts, fearing loss of market share and of competitiveness against US shale production. They had previously in December agreed on a milder production cut of 500,000 barrels in 2020, and Russia wanted this to continue. 俄羅斯的石油公司曾對這種減產措施加以反對，擔心會失去市佔率，也會失去對美國頁岩油的競爭力。他們去年十二月曾同意一項較溫和的減產計畫，將在二〇二〇年減產五十萬桶，俄羅斯希望維持此計畫。 Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest crude exporter, responded on March 8 by announcing unilateral price cuts with its biggest price cut in 20 years in a bid to win market share. This prompted the oil price to plummet and fueled huge drops on stock markets the following day. 三月八日星期日，世界最大的原油出口國沙烏地阿拉伯對此做出回應，單方面宣佈降低油品價格，以贏得市佔率，此為二十年來最大降幅。這使得油價暴跌，並引發了三月九日星期一的股市大跌。 By March 9, oil had fallen to as low as US$31 from about US$66 at the end of 2019 as Riyadh said i

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 即刻加入15Mins通勤學英語直播室，每週一9pm等你來說英文 : https://15minsengcafe.pse.is/46hm8k Types of questions to ask to communicate effectively 啟動型問題The kickstart question: A good opening question is key, and asking a kickstarter like this will begin the conversation quickly and effectively—no need for useless banter. This question gets right down to business without being too aggressive or pointed. Example: What’s on your mind? What are your thoughts? What do you think of the issue? 專注型問題The focus question: So that you can really hone in on an issue, first find out directly from the source exactly what it is—before you’ve jumped in to help with something that isn’t the real problem. Example: What’s the real challenge here? What are the key issues? Do we know what the main problem is? 根本型問題The foundation question: Find out what your team member wants. It’s as simple as that. They might want something small or big, and thanks to this question, you’ll learn which—while leaving them feeling empowered. Example: What do you need? What kind of help do you want? What exactly do we need to solve this? 策略型問題The strategic question: Everyone needs a little help prioritizing now and then. This question will help the other person understand that they can drop a task to make room for something more important, so they don’t feel as though they are constantly taking on more without there being any room for relief. Example: If you’re saying yes to this, what are you saying no to? 分享時間               What was the one issue you helped a co-worker clarify/ resolve?What are other important tips for effective listening and questions?

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K529: About Iceland - Why it’s perfectly normal to see baby puffins thrown off cliffs in Iceland each year Watching thousands of baby puffins being tossed off a cliff is perfectly normal for the people of Iceland’s Westman Islands. The chicks of Atlantic puffins hatch in burrows on high sea cliffs. 對冰島威斯特曼群島居民來說，看見數千隻小海鸚被丟下懸崖相當平常。大西洋海鸚幼鳥在海邊懸崖高處的洞穴裡孵化。 When they’re ready to fledge, they fly from their colony and spend several years at sea until they return to land to breed. Pufflings have historically found the ocean by following the light of the moon. 當牠們羽翼豐滿準備展翅飛翔時，就會離開巢穴，花費數年待在海上直到返回陸地繁殖。歷史上，海鸚能跟隨月光找到海洋。 Many residents of the Westman Islands spend a few weeks in August and September collecting wayward pufflings that have crashed into town after mistaking human lights for the moon. 威斯特曼群島上許多居民會在8月和9月間花費數週把偏離方向的海鸚集中起來，在牠們把人為燈光誤認為月亮，墜入城鎮後。 Releasing the fledglings at the cliffs the following day sets them on the correct path. 隔天在懸崖邊釋放幼鳥，使牠們走上正確的道路。 Next Article Iceland recommends hugging trees instead of people 冰島建議人們用抱樹取代抱人 With countries imposing lockdown to block the spread of the virus, the Icelandic Forestry Service has taken a weird approach to the situation. 隨著各國實施封鎖措施防堵病毒傳播，冰島林業局採取一個奇怪的方法處理這種情況。 The Icelandic Forestry Service has asked citizens to hug trees and plants while maintaining social distancing. Forest rangers at Hallormsstaður National Forest in East Iceland are cleaning up the snow from roads so locals can go and hug trees. 冰島林業局讓公民去抱樹與植物，同時保持社交距離。冰島東部Hallormsstaður國家森林的森林保育員，正在清理路上的積雪，以便當地人可以去抱樹。 "When you hug [a tree], you feel it first in your toes and then up your legs and into your chest and then up into your head," forest ranger Þór Þorfinnsson tells the Icelandic National Broadcasting Service. "It’s such a wonderful feeling of relaxation and then you’re ready for a new day and new challenges." 「當你抱住（一棵樹），你會感覺到它先是出現在你的腳趾，接著上到你的小腿，並且進入你的胸膛，進入你的頭」，森林保育員索芬森告訴冰島國家廣播公司，「這是一個奇妙的放鬆感受，然後你就會準備好面對新的一天與新的挑戰」。 Þorfinnsson recommends that not everyone should embrace the first tree they see; potential huggers should venture deeper into the forest. 索芬森建議，不是每個人都應該擁抱看見的第一棵樹，有潛力的擁抱者應該冒險進入森林深處。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1567879; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1367430

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K528: About furniture - Website offers $1,000 to a couple willing to build IKEA furniture Financial advice website FinanceBuzz is seeking a couple willing to test the strength of their bond by assembling IKEA furniture together this Valentine’s season. 在這個情人節，美國理財資訊網站FinanceBuzz正尋求一對願意藉由一起組裝宜家家居家具，測試兩人親密程度的伴侶。 The website said it is searching for an "IKEA DIY Duo" who would be given $1,000 IKEA Gift Card to purchase a bedroom set. 該網站表示，他們正在尋求一對「宜家家居自己動手做伴侶」，將給予兩人1000美元的宜家家居禮物卡，讓他們購買一整套臥室組合。 The couple would then be asked to assemble the furniture together and document the experience. 這對伴侶將被要求一起組裝家具，並記錄整個過程。 "Just you and your significant other, a wordless instruction manual and a hex key," the site said. 網站上說：「就只有你和你至關重要的另一半、一份沒有文字說明的示範手冊和一把內六角扳手。」 The winning couple will be awarded $1,000 for completing the task. 這對伴侶完成任務、拿下勝利後，將獲頒1000美元。 Next Article Chinese retailers hijack the Ikea experience 中國零售商攔截宜家家居的品牌經驗 Nestled in a southern district of Kunming city in southwest China, is a 10,000 square meter, four-story building that could make Swedish furniture giant Ikea uneasy. 位於中國西南部昆明市南區的一棟面積達1萬平方公尺的4層樓建築物，很可能讓瑞典的家具業龍頭「宜家家居」感到不安。 11 Furniture, as the store is known, copies Ikea’s blue and yellow color scheme, mock-up rooms, miniature pencils, signage and even its rocking chair designs. 這間名為「11家具」的家具店直接拷貝宜家的藍黃兩色設計、模型房間、迷你鉛筆與標誌，甚至連宜家的搖椅設計也照抄不誤。 This knock-off Ikea store is emblematic of a new wave of piracy sweeping through China. Increasingly sophisticated counterfeiters no longer just pump out fake luxury handbags, DVDs and sports shoes but replicate the look, feel and service of successful Western retail concepts -- in essence, pirating the entire brand experience. 這間山寨版宜家家具店正象徵著中國目前掀起的全新仿冒風潮。手法愈來愈精緻的仿冒者不再只是迅速生產出假的名牌手提包、DVD和運動鞋，而是要全面複製西方成功零售業概念的外觀、風格與服務，基本上就是抄襲整個品牌經驗。 Many of the most successful consumer companies have invested millions in promoting and building brands which encapsulate ideals, values and aspirations, creating valuable and loyal customer bases that sometimes border on cults. 大多數成功的消費企業都已投注數百萬美元在推銷與建立品牌上，這些品牌可精簡傳達出企業理想、價值與未來遠景，創造出極有價值的忠實顧客基礎，有時甚至可能形成對品牌的崇拜。 The presence of the fake stores in Kunming highlights China’s seemingly insatiable appetite for western brands in some consumer segments that have not been tapped, particularly in smaller cities far from the affluent eastern seaboard. 昆明出現這些山寨商店，則凸顯出中國某些消費市場對西方品牌的胃口無法得到滿足，卻未獲有效開發，尤其是遠離富裕東部沿海地區的較小型城市。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1566042 ; https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/world/paper/514527

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments Summary: 討論文章: https://edition.cnn.com/travel/article/japan-never-traveler-culture-cmb/index.html The latest post-pandemic era phenomenon in Japan is the rise of the never travelers. They don't feel enticed to travel abroad, nor the need to spend big dollars on travel and seeing the world. In this episode, Angel and I discuss if we have the potential of becoming never travelers one day. Why don't you comment and tell us if you are a never traveler!歡迎投稿有趣的主題給醬老師與Angel老師 Comment down below! Vocabulary: 1. Tap your heels three times 綠野仙蹤裡，桃樂絲得到魔法鞋後，回家時必須做的 Dorothy tapped her heels three times and said "there's no place like home". 桃樂絲敲了腳跟三下並說“沒有一個地方如家一樣”。 2. Phenomenon n. 現象 The latest phenomenon in Japan is the rise of the never travelers. 日本最新現象是「從不旅行者」的崛起。 3. Convenience n. 便利性 Convenience in a country like Taiwan and Japan are what most travelers miss most. 便利性在台灣跟日本是多數旅客最懷念的。 更多Vocab Podcast節目: https://www.15mins.today/vocab 歡迎主題投稿/意見回覆 : [email protected] 商業合作/贊助來信：[email protected]

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K527: Why was the Turkey-Syria earthquake so bad? The magnitude 7.8 earthquake that struck Turkey and Syria on Monday last week is likely to be one of the deadliest this decade, seismologists said, with a more than 100km rupture between the Anatolian and Arabian plates. 地震學家表示，上週一襲擊土耳其和敘利亞的7.8級地震，可能是十年來傷亡最慘重的地震之一，安納托利亞和阿拉伯板塊之間斷裂了超過100公里。 Here is what scientists said happened beneath the Earth’s surface and what to expect in the aftermath: 以下是科學家所描述地表下所發生的事，以及預期後果： WHERE DID THE EARTHQUAKE ORIGINATE? 震源位於何處？ The epicenter was about 26km east of the Turkish city of Nurdagi at a depth of about 18km on the East Anatolian Fault. The quake radiated towards the northeast, bringing devastation to central Turkey and Syria. 震央位於土耳其城市努爾達伊以東約26公里處，深度約18公里，處於東安納托利亞斷層上。地震朝東北方向發散出去，蹂躪土耳其中部及敘利亞。 During the 20th Century, the East Anatolian Fault yielded little major seismic activity. “If we were going simply by (major) earthquakes that were recorded by seismometers, it would look more or less blank,” said Roger Musson, an honorary research associate at the British Geological Survey. 東安納托利亞斷層在二十世紀幾乎沒有重大地震活動。「如果我們只根據地震儀記錄的（大）地震來判斷，它看來多少是空白的」，英國地質調查局名譽研究員羅傑．穆森說。 Only three earthquakes have registered above 6.0 on the Richter Scale since 1970 in the area, according to the US Geological Survey. But in 1822, a 7.0 quake hit the region, killing an estimated 20,000 people. 根據美國地質調查局的資料，自1970年以來，該地區僅發生過三次芮氏6.0級以上的地震。但在1822年，一場7.0級地震襲擊了該地區，估計有兩萬人喪生。 HOW BAD WAS THIS EARTHQUAKE? 這次地震有多嚴重？ On average, there are fewer than 20 quakes over 7.0 magnitude in any year, making last Monday’s event severe. 平均來說，每年超過7.0級的地震只有不到20次，這讓上週一的地震變得非常嚴重。 Compared with the 6.2 earthquake that hit central Italy in 2016 and killed some 300 people, the Turkey-Syria earthquake released 250 times as much energy, according to Joanna Faure Walker, head of the University College London Institute for Risk and Disaster Reduction. 倫敦大學學院風險與減災研究所所長喬安娜‧佛爾‧沃克表示，與2016年發生在義大利中部、造成約300人死亡的6.2級地震相比，土耳其—敘利亞地震所釋放的能量，是義大利地震的250倍。 Only two of the deadliest earthquakes from 2013 to 2022 were of the same magnitude as last Monday’s quake. 2013年至2022年傷亡最嚴重的地震中，只有兩次與上週一的地震震度相同。 WHY WAS IT SO SEVERE? 為何如此慘烈？ The East Anatolian Fault is a strike-slip fault. 東安納托利亞斷層屬於橫移斷層 In those, solid rock plates are pushing up against each other across a vertical fault line, building stress until one finally slips in a horizontal motion, releasing a tremendous amount of strain that can trigger an earthquake. 在橫移斷層中，堅硬的岩石板塊在垂直斷層線上相互推擠，不斷增加壓力，最後造成一塊岩石板塊水平滑動，釋放出可引發地震的巨大壓力。 The San Andreas Fault in California is perhaps the world’s most famous strike-slip fault, with scientists warning that a catastrophic quake is long overdue. 加州的聖安德列斯斷層或許是最著名的橫移斷層，科學家警告說，一場災難性的地震早該發生了。 The initial rupture for the Turkey-Syria earthquake kicked off at a relatively shallow depth. “The shaking at the ground surface will have been more severe than for a deeper earthquake of the same magnitude at source,” David Rothery, a planetary geoscientist at the Open University in Britain, said. 土耳其—敘利亞地震的斷裂是從深度較淺的地方開始。英國空中大學的行星地質學家大衛．羅瑟里表示：「相同的震級，若發生在地表，其震度將比震源更深的地震更加嚴重」。Source article: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2023/02/14/2003794282

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K526: 疫情讓學生損失三分之一學年 Third of School Year Lost, Study of Pandemic Finds Children experienced learning deficits during the COVID pandemic that amounted to about one-third of a school year’s worth of knowledge and skills, according to a new global analysis, and had not recovered from those losses more than two years later. 一項新的全球研究指出，新冠疫情期間，學童經歷學習損失，相當於大約三分之一學年的知識與技能，且兩年多後的現在，仍無法彌補這些損失。 Learning delays and regressions were most severe in developing countries and among students from low-income backgrounds, researchers said, worsening existing disparities and threatening to follow children into higher education and the workforce. 研究人員指，來自發展中國家與低收入家庭學生，面臨最嚴重學習落後與損失問題，導致現存社會不平等加劇，且恐持續影響這些學生至高等教育甚至職場階段。 The analysis, published in the journal Nature Human Behavior and drawing on data from 15 countries, provided the most comprehensive account to date of the academic hardships wrought by the pandemic. The findings suggest that the challenges of remote learning — coupled with other stressors that plagued children and families throughout the pandemic — were not rectified when school doors reopened. 這項分析研究刊登於「自然人類行為」科學期刊，依據15個國家的資料，為疫情造成的學習困境提供至今最全面的報告。研究顯示，遠距學習的挑戰，加上疫情期間孩子與家庭蒙受的其他壓力，導致的學習損失在校門重開之後也無法彌補。 “In order to recover what was lost, we have to be doing more than just getting back to normal,” said Bastian Betthäuser, a researcher at the Center for Research on Social Inequalities at Sciences Po in Paris, who was a co-author on the review. He urged officials worldwide to provide intensive summer programs and tutoring initiatives that target poorer students who fell furthest behind. 研究主要作者之一、法國「巴黎政治學院」社會不平等研究中心研究員貝特豪瑟說：「若要彌補損失，我們需做得比回歸正常更多。」他籲各國針對學習落後狀況最嚴重的貧窮學生提供暑期密集課程，制定輔導計畫。 In the United States, one study showed that the average public elementary or middle school student lost the equivalent of a half-year of learning in math, and 6% of students were in districts that lost more than a full year. Standardized math test scores in 2022, when compared with those in 2019, showed the largest drop ever recorded in the three decades since the exam was first administered. 在美國，一項研究顯示，一般的公立小學或中學學生在數學領域損失了約半年的學習量，而6%學生所處的學區讓他們損失超過一整年的學習量。學生在2022年的數學普考成績大幅低於2019年的成績，是該考試舉辦30年來的最大退步幅度。 The findings challenge the perceptions of many parents, almost half of whom said in 2022 surveys that they did not believe their children had suffered any achievement loss during the pandemic, and only 9% of whom expressed concern about whether their children would catch up. 這項發現顛覆了許多家長的認知，根據2022年民調，近半數受訪家長不認為孩子的學習因疫情受到損失，只有9%的家長擔心他們的小孩是否能趕上。 A separate review of test scores from 2.1 million students in the United States highlighted the impacts of economic disparity. Students at schools in communities with high poverty levels spent more of the 2020-21 school year learning remotely than those at schools in wealthier communities did, and students in poorer schools experienced steeper declines in performance when they were remote. 另一份研究針對210萬名美國學生的考試成績分析，發現了貧富不均造成的影響。2020至2021學年，在較高貧窮率社區的學校，學生比較富裕社區的學校接受了更長時間遠端授課，且較窮學校學生的學業表現在遠端授課期間也出現了更顯著的退步。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6964365

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments Topic: In Amsterdam, Floating Homes That Only Look Like Ships When Karen Bosma first moved her boat to the Borneokade, northeast of Amsterdam’s bustling city center, in 1999, the neighborhood was barely more than a cluster of commercial docks and underused warehouses. 凱倫．博斯馬1999年剛把她的船移到荷蘭首都阿姆斯特丹熱鬧市中心東北方的波諾卡德時，這一帶幾乎只有成排商船船席和不常使用的倉庫。 “It was for poor people — a lot of artists lived on boats,” she said, sitting in her neat, cozy living room just below the waterline. 博斯馬坐在她整潔舒適的客廳裡回憶說：「當時這是窮人聚居區，很多藝術家住在船上。」客廳就在吃水線下方。 In the quarter century since, Bosma, a 62-year-old social worker, and her husband have raised two sons on the Distel, a 1912 82-foot freighter, which — stripped of its engine, fuel tanks and cargo hold — is one of Amsterdam’s iconic houseboats, with a seagoing hull, wheelhouse and curtained windows. 此後的四分之一個世紀，現年62歲的社工博斯馬和先生，在這艘船上把兩個兒子帶大。這艘船名叫「迪斯特爾」，是1912年打造的貨船，長25公尺，引擎、燃料槽和貨艙都已去除，是阿姆斯特丹著名船屋之一，具備遠洋船船體、舵手室和裝上窗簾的窗子。 Three boats down lies the B18, an elegant 131-foot, 2 1/2-story floating mansion (with more than 3,000 square feet of interior space) that shows just how perfectly the soul of a luxury yacht combines with open-space living and elegant living quarters. 三艘船以外停泊著B18，是雅緻的兩層半水上豪宅，長40公尺，室內面積超過279平方公尺（約84坪），顯示奢華遊艇的精髓如何與室外生活和優美的室內起居空間完美結合。 “It has to be a ship on the outside and a house on the inside,” said Gijs Haverkate, 53, who created the vessel and lives on it with his family. 53歲的哈福卡特造了B18，並與家人住在船上，他說：「B18必須外觀是艘船，內部是個家。」 In the Dutch capital, houseboats have gone upmarket. The new owners are wealthy and discerning, interested in new designs, upgraded comfort and sustainability. 在阿姆斯特丹，船屋已變得高檔了。新一批船屋主人富裕且有品味，對新設計、更高的舒適感和永續性都很感興趣。 Haverkate, a designer by trade, hopes his boat will inspire others to build on the water. He runs UrbanShips, a company that builds customized houseboats designed to look like ships. 哈福卡特以設計為業，希望他的船能激勵別人在水上蓋房子。他經營「都市船」公司，依照客戶需求打造看來像船隻的船屋。 After years of serving as a relatively cheap place to live in an expensive city, Amsterdam’s houseboats — or rather the spaces they float — have become popular and expensive, with prices increasing 30% to 40% over the past five years alone, according to Jon Kok, one of the city’s best known houseboat real estate agents. 阿姆斯特丹的船屋（更確切地說，是承載船屋的水面），原本的功用是在這昂貴的城市中作為相對廉價的住所，多年下來卻變得大受歡迎且價格高漲，阿姆斯特丹最知名船屋仲介公司之一「約翰科克」資料顯示，單單這五年來，船屋價格就漲了三到四成。 The whale’s share of the price increase comes from the value of the berth, not the ship. 船屋價格上漲，主要是因為船席變得更值錢，而不是船體本身。 A typical Amsterdam canal berth might be worth close to a half-million dollars, depending on its location and how big a ship it will allow; some of the older, unrenovated ships in those berths might be worth only $20,000 (building a new ship, of course, is much more expensive). 一個典型的阿姆斯特丹運河船席，可能就要近50萬美元，視地點和可容下多大船隻而定。停在這種船席上的一些老舊未翻新船隻，可能只值兩萬美元。（當然，造新船貴得多。） But in this gentrification debate, the cost of new berths is less important than the architecture of the ship — and whether they ever served as actual commercial ships. 不過，在討論船屋愈來愈高級的話題時，新船席的價格並不如船隻的設計美感和是否曾作為真正的商船來得重要。 Once populated by converted working boats, the canal now holds an increasing number of floating houses designed to look like oceangoing vessels but with hardly any of the working features of a real boat. 阿姆斯特丹的運河曾經滿是工作船改造後的船屋，現在有愈來愈多的水上房屋，設計成外觀像遠洋船，但實際上幾乎不具備真正船隻的功能。 Source article: https://paper.udn.com/udnpaper/POH0067/348587/web/#2L-16188816L Next Article Topic: Japan has so many vacant homes it’s giving them away Four years ago, Naoko and Takayuki Ida were given a house in the small town of Okutama, in Tokyo prefecture. For free. 4年前，井田直子與孝之得到一棟位於東京都小鎮奧多摩的房子。不用錢。 A free house may sound like a scam. But Japan faces an unusual property problem： it has more homes than people to live in them. 免費的房子聽起來像是騙局。但日本正面臨一項不尋常的房地產問題：房屋數量多於入住人數。 In 2013, there were 61 million houses and 52 million households, according to the Japan Policy Forum. And the situation is poised to get worse. 「日本政策論壇」指出，2013年時有6100萬間房子與5200萬戶家庭。而且，這種情況還會日益惡化。 Japan’s population is expected to decline from 127 million to about 88 million by 2065, according to the National Institute of Population and Social Security, meaning even fewer people will need houses. As young people leave rural areas for city jobs, Japan’s countryside has become haunted by deserted "ghost houses." 根據（日本）「國立社會保障、人口問題研究所」，預料日本人口到了2065年，會從1億2700萬減至約8800萬，意味需要房屋的人會更少。隨著年輕人為了在都市工作離開鄉間，日本鄉間已充斥遭棄置的「鬼屋」。 It’s predicted that by 2040, nearly 900 towns and villages across Japan will no longer exist － and Okutama is one of them. In that context, giving away property is a bid for survival. 預料到了2040年，全日本將近900座小鎮與村莊將不復存在—奧多摩便是其中之一。在此情況下，贈送房地產便成為一種求生之道。 Next Article Topic: Part Office Building , Part Homeless Shelter A year ago, when Amazon let a homeless shelter for families move into a former motel it owned, it was viewed as a nice but fleeting gesture. The motel was on a chunk of downtown property where Amazon pl

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments Other ways to say: VERY GOOD Top-notch 頂尖的 That restaurant's really top-notch. Great 很棒 You looked great in that outfit. Splendid 輝煌/燦爛 She is a splendid painter. Terrific 非常/了不得 I feel terrific today. Excellent 出色/很棒 Her car is in excellent condition. Wonderful 精彩/雄偉 We had a wonderful time in Italy last summer. Other ways to say: VERY MUCH Deeply 深深的 The comment had offended him deeply. Greatly 大大的 Your support is greatly appreciated. Immensely 非常/廣大的 The visitors had enjoyed the game immensely. Thoroughly 徹底/好好的 The children thoroughly enjoyed the show. Extremely 非常/極端 He knows the area extremely well. Badly 非常 Anne was missing him badly. 分享時間:Tell a personal experience related to something / experience that was very good or very muchPick 4 words and make sentences

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K525: About odd news - San Antonio Zoo will let you name a cockroach after an ex and feed it to an animal The San Antonio Zoo is offering a special Valentine’s Day greeting for exes who just won’t bug off. （美國德州）聖安東尼奧動物園正為那些死纏爛打的前任，提供特別的西洋情人節祝福。 For $10, the zoo will name a cockroach after your not-so-special someone and feed it to an animal – a cold, but direct message that you’re no longer interested. 只要10美元，該動物園就會以你已經不那麼在意的意中人的名字，為1隻蟑螂命名，並將牠餵給動物（吃掉）—此為（向你的前任傳達）你對他（再也）沒興趣的冷酷但直接的訊息。 Those not into bugs can choose a vegetable for $5 or a rodent for $25 instead. 不喜歡蟲子的人可以改選5美元的蔬菜，或25美元的囓齒動物。 All donors will receive a digital Valentine’s Day Card showing their support for the zoo. They can also opt to send their ex-boo a digital Valentine’s Day Card informing them that a cockroach, rodent, or veggie was named after them and fed to an animal. 所有捐款人都將收到1張顯示其對該動物園之支持的數位西洋情人節賀卡，也可選擇發送數位西洋情人節賀卡給其前任，告知對方有蟑螂、囓齒動物或蔬菜以他們命名，並餵給動物吃掉。 Next Article Stolen hot dog statue returned to WVa restaurant owner 遭竊的熱狗塑像回歸西維吉尼亞州餐廳老闆 The owner of a West Virginia restaurant that was heavily damaged by fire has his coveted hot dog statue back. 西維吉尼亞州一間遭逢融祝肆虐的餐廳老闆拿回了他備受覬覦的熱狗塑像。 The “Wienerman” statue was stolen from the Dairy Winkle in Campbells Creek during a break-in sometime after the Jan. 11 fire, the Kanawha County Sheriff’s Office said in a news release. 卡諾瓦郡治安官辦公室在一份新聞稿中說，「懷厄曼」塑像於1月11日火災後某時間點發生的坎貝爾斯河鎮闖空門事件，從海螺乳品場失竊。 A tip led deputies to a location where the statue was found undamaged. It was returned to restaurant owner Kerry Ellison, the statement said. 該聲明說，在一條線索指引下，警方於一處地點發現毫無損傷的該塑像。該聲明說，它已物歸餐廳老闆克里．埃里森。 Investigators have not identified a suspect and are seeking information about the theft. 調查人員尚未確定嫌疑人，正在找這起竊案的相關資訊。 The short statue depicts a hot dog licking its lips and holding a bottle of mustard while pouring a bottle of ketchup on its head. 這座矮小塑像描繪著一根熱狗舔著嘴唇並拿著一瓶芥末，同時把一瓶番茄醬倒到它頭上。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1565012 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1564146

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K524: About Japan -Fans flood Gifu for historical parade led by Takuya Kimura Fans poured into this central Japan city to catch a glimpse of popular actor Takuya Kimura dressed as a renowned feudal lord from the 16th century in a traditional festival held Nov. 6. 粉絲湧入這座日本中部城市，一睹人氣男星木村拓哉在（2022年）11月6日的一場傳統慶典中，裝扮成一名16世紀知名封建領主的風采。 Kimura posed as Oda Nobunaga (1534-1582) in the Gifu Nobunaga festival, along with fellow actor Hideaki Ito, both on horseback. 木村在「岐阜信長祭」上扮演織田信長（1534-1582），與他一道的還有同劇演員伊藤英明，兩人都騎著馬。 Nearly 1 million people applied for spots to view Kimura leading the parade. 近100萬人申請佔位觀看這場由木村引領的遊行。 Loud cheers and applause erupted when Kimura, looking stern and raising his right hand with a folding fan, shouted, “Everyone, time to go into battle.” 當木村一臉嚴肅、高舉持扇右手呼喊：「諸君，出征」，（現場）爆出巨大歡呼聲與掌聲。 The two actors led the procession for about 1 kilometer along Kinkabashi-dori street in central Gifu. 兩名男星帶領遊行隊伍沿著岐阜市中心的金華橋大道走了約一公里。 Next Article Japan leads world in childless middle-aged women 中年無子女婦女比例，日本全球居冠 Japan has the highest share of childless 50-year-old women among developed countries, the most recent data shows, underscoring the challenges the nation faces in averting its looming population crisis. 最新資料顯示，日本50歲無子女女性的比例，在已開發國家中最高，凸顯這個國家在避免其迫在眉睫的人口危機上面臨的挑戰。 In Japan, 27% of women born in 1970 have not experienced any live births by the time they were 50 years of age, according to statistics from the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. This is by far the biggest share among 17 countries with comparable data, the closest being Finland at 20.7%. 經濟合作暨發展組織（OECD）的統計顯示，在日本，1970年出生的女性中，有27％在50歲之前沒有任何活產經驗。在可比較數據的17國中，這是迄今最大的佔比，最接近的是20.7％的芬蘭。 Austria and Spain ranked third and fourth, respectively. The OECD data does not include Germany, but the country’s official statistics show that 21% of women born in 1969 remain childless. 澳洲與西班牙分別排名第三與第四。OECD數據沒有包含德國，但德國官方數據顯示，1969年出生無子女女性佔比21％。 There are 24 countries with comparable data for women born in 1965. Among that group, Japan once again takes the lead on childless women, at 22.1%. 有24個國家擁有1965年出生女性的可比較數據。在該群體中，日本以22.1％的比例，再度在無子女女性上取得領先。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1562421 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1564434

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 諺語1：Going Down the Rabbit Hole （著迷於新事物；陷入困惑） 兔年來個跟兔子有關的諺語，野兔會挖洞，保護自己有安全感，遮風避雨，睡覺 諺語出自於英國作家路易斯卡羅在1865 年寫的小說《愛麗絲夢遊仙境》( Alice's Adventures in Wonderland ) 小女孩愛麗絲原本在樹底下與姊姊一起在看書，結果看到遠方有一隻白兔手拿著懷錶，甚至還開口講人話，趨於好奇就追了上去，結果一不小心掉進了兔子洞，展開了一連串的奇幻冒險。 Example sentence: - Don't start watching Netflix. You don't want to go down that rabbit hole. - Whenever I try a new mobile game, I fall into the rabbit hole and it take a long time for me to get out. 諺語2：Cat got your tongue （無言以對） 有兩種說法 1. 與古埃及人的貓崇拜有關。當時，說謊者和褻瀆神明的人會因口出不合、作假見證以及發表反對政府或既定宗教的言論而受到嚴厲懲罰。當局會割掉人們的舌頭作為對他們罪行的報復。然後他們將這些舌頭餵給附近的貓。埃及的神話哩，有貓臉人身的女神，叫做芭絲特 殺貓者處以死刑，即使誤殺也是一樣。祭司會讓貓自由進出神廟，讓人不忘貓神芭絲泰特。 2. 英國海軍以前體罰，有一種刑具叫做九尾鞭，或稱九尾貓，由於鞭刑打的受刑人皮開肉綻，且行刑是由海軍軍人輪流執行，因此衍伸出這句諺語，用來形容執行的人，嚇到開不了口。 Example sentence: - What? Cat got your tongue? 諺語3：bark is worse than his bite （刀子嘴豆腐心） Bark is worse than one's bite這個表達在 1600 年代中期開始使用，指的是一隻狂吠的狗忙於狂吠而無法真正咬你。狗行為學家說，吠叫的狗害怕，而願意咬人的狗不害怕；他很有攻擊性，會咆哮，而不是吠叫。 Example Sentence: - Nevermind my dog, his bark is worse than his bite. - Ms. Angel looks very tough, but she is very nice. Some say her bark is worse than her bite.

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K522: What 70 Years of War Can Tell Us About the Russia-Ukraine Conflict Any Russian invasion of Ukraine was long expected to play out as a kind of postmodern war, defined by 21st-century weapons like media manipulation, battlefield-clouding disinformation, cyberattacks, false flag operations and unmarked fighters. 俄國對烏克蘭的任何入侵早已被認為會是一場後現代戰爭，由21世紀武器界定，如媒體操縱、戰場假消息戰、網路攻擊、栽贓行動以及無名戰士。 Such elements have featured in this war. But it is traditional 20th-century dynamics that have instead dominated: shifting battle lines of tanks and troops; urban assaults; struggles over air supremacy and over supply lines; and mass mobilization of troops and of weapons production. 這些的確是這場戰爭的特點。但主導局面的仍是20世紀的傳統動能：戰車與部隊不斷變化的戰線、城市攻防、爭奪制空權和補給線，大規模動員軍隊與生產武器。 The war’s contours, now nearly a year into the fighting, resemble not so much those of any future war but rather those of a certain sort of conflict from decades past: namely, wars fought between nations in which one does not outright conquer the other. 這場持續近一年戰爭的輪廓，不太像任何未來的戰爭，較像是數十年前的某種衝突，也就是一方未完全征服另一方的國與國戰爭。 Such conflicts have grown rarer in the period since 1945, an era often associated more with civil wars, insurgencies and American invasions that have quickly shifted to occupation. 自1945年以來，這類衝突愈來愈少，這一時代往往較常跟內戰、叛亂及美國入侵後迅速轉變成占領的有關。 But wars between nations have continued: between Israel and Arab states, Iran and Iraq, Armenia and Azerbaijan, India and Pakistan, Ethiopia and Eritrea. These are the conflicts that military historians and analysts, when asked to draw parallels with the Russian war in Ukraine, tend to cite. 但國與國間的戰爭仍繼續上演：以色列和阿拉伯國家、伊朗和伊拉克、亞美尼亞和亞塞拜然、印度和巴基斯坦、衣索比亞和厄利垂亞。當被問到能跟俄國在烏克蘭戰爭相提並論之事時，軍事史學家跟分析人士往往會引用這些衝突。 “You have these big commonalities. In Korea, for example,” said Sergey Radchenko, a Johns Hopkins University historian, referring to the Korean War. “Big conventional battles. Bombardment of infrastructure.” 約翰霍普金斯大學歷史學家拉德琴科在談到韓戰時說：「這些有很大的共同點，像是在韓國，大型傳統戰鬥、轟炸基礎設施。」 Every war is unique. But certain trends that have played out across this subset of conflicts, including in Ukraine, may help to shed light on what drives week-to-week fighting, what tends to determine victory or failure and how such wars typically end — or don’t. 每場戰爭都獨一無二，但包括烏克蘭在內的這類衝突中出現的某些趨勢，可能有助於闡明何者導致一周又一周的戰鬥，以及決定勝利或失敗的因素是什麼，還有這類戰爭通常如何結束，或是不會結束。 One after another, Radchenko said, such wars have started over fundamental territorial disputes that date back to the warring countries’ founding and are therefore baked into both sides’ very conception of their national identities. This makes the underlying conflict so difficult to resolve that fighting often recurs repeatedly over many decades. 拉德琴科表示，這樣的戰爭一場接一場，起因可追溯到交戰雙方建國時期重大領土爭端，因此已深植於雙方各自國家認同之中。這造成潛在衝突難以解決，戰爭經常在數十年間反覆發生。 Those wars have often turned, perhaps more than any other factor, on industrial attrition, as each side strains to maintain the flow of materiel like tanks and anti-aircraft munitions that keep it in the fight. 也許比其他任何因素還重要的是，這些戰爭往往轉向工業消耗，因為雙方為了繼續戰鬥下去，都在努力維持戰車和防空彈藥等物資的產出。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6948318

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K522: 養小孩的方式不同於往、更加不易 How Parenting Today Is Different, and Harder American parents are finding the job much harder than they expected, found a large new survey by Pew Research Center. And it’s not just how they feel — parenting is more demanding than it used to be, research has found. 美國民調機構「皮尤研究中心」一份新的大型民調發現，美國爸媽覺得養小孩遠比想像中困難。研究證實，這不僅是感覺，養小孩確實比過去來得更困難。 Eight in 10 parents of children younger than 18 find it to be enjoyable and rewarding most or all of the time, according to the new survey of 3,757 U.S. parents in that group. But two-thirds also say it’s harder than they thought it would be — including about one-third of mothers who say it’s a lot harder than they expected. 民調訪問了3757名家長。在小孩年齡低於十八歲的受訪家長中，八成表示養小孩大多時候或總是讓人感到愉快又有成就感，但其中三分之二也說，養小孩遠比想像中還要困難，包括近三分之一的媽媽們說，養小孩遠比預期困難非常多。 The findings reflect and build on other research. Today’s parents spend more time and money on their children than previous generations and feel more pressure to be hands-on. 這些發現是根據且反映了其他研究。現在的家長比過去幾代付出更多時間與金錢在小孩身上，且感受到更多壓力必須親自教養小孩。 The survey helps describe some of the particular ways in which parenting has become more demanding and stressful (one-third of respondents said it was that way all or most of the time). 這項民調有助描述某些特殊樣貌，讓養小孩更費力且壓力更大（三分之一的受訪者表示他們多半或總是有此感受）。 For one, mothers feel increasingly torn between their various roles. They have more options beyond motherhood, yet they still feel societal pressure to meet certain standards as mothers. 正因為如此，許多媽媽們在不同角色間感受到更強烈的拉扯。除了扮演媽媽，她們其實還有更多角色選項，但她們還是感受到社會壓力，必需符合某些當媽媽的標準。 In the Pew survey, just one-third of mothers said being a mother was the most important aspect of who they were as a person. Yet they also said they felt judged for their parenting, more than fathers were, and spent significantly more time than fathers on the physical and emotional labor of parenting. 皮尤研究指出，僅三分之一的媽媽表示，當媽媽是她們人生最重要的一個層面。但她們同時也覺得，在養小孩上，自己比爸爸們受到更多評判，因此也比爸爸們付出明顯更多的時間、體力與精神養小孩。 Low-income parents, and those who are Black or Hispanic, were most likely to say that being a parent was the most important thing about them. They were also more likely to say that parenting was enjoyable or rewarding most of the time. 低收入父母，以及非裔或西班牙裔，最有可能表示為人父母對他們而言是最重要的事。他們也最有可能表示養小孩大多時候很愉快且有成就感。 Also, research has found, today’s parents feel intense pressure to constantly teach and interact with their children, 另外，研究也發現，經常教導孩子以及與孩子互動讓現在的家長感到巨大壓力。 Often, Pew found, this means more emotional engagement. Nearly half said they were raising their children differently than they had been raised by their own parents. That meant less yelling, and more verbal affirmations, outward displays of affection and honest conversations about hard topics. 皮尤研究指出，這大多是因為他們在其中付出了更多心力。近半數受訪者表示，他們養小孩的方式與父母養育他們的方式不同：他們較少大吼，較常口頭鼓勵並表現出對孩子的愛，也更常與孩子誠實討論嚴肅的話題。 Another way parenting has become harder, according to the survey, is a new set of concerns about children’s well-being. Three-quarters of parents said they were worried their children would struggle with anxiety or depression, or face bullying. 根據這項研究，父母對孩子身心健全的一些新擔憂，也讓養小孩變難。四分之三受訪家長表示，他們擔心孩子出現焦慮、憂鬱等問題，或遭遇霸凌。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6964380

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 主題: 跟讀挑戰 – 台灣燈會在台北與日本壽司郎事件Taiwan Lantern Festival and Sushiro incident 摘取文章：https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4808035; https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4807840 Topic: Over 1 million visitors attend Taiwan Lantern Festival in a single day As the Taiwan Lantern Festival in Taipei counts down to its conclusion, visitors have increased and surpassed 1 million in a single day on Saturday (Feb. 11). 隨著台北的臺灣燈會逐漸圓滿結束，遊客人數逐漸增加，在星期六（2月11日）一天之內已經超過100萬人。 According to the department, despite the large crowd, traffic flowed smoothly and without accidents. This was thanks to flexible traffic control policies such as closing road sections for pedestrians’ use, as well as nearly 500 police officers and volunteer traffic wardens. 根據市府部門的說法，儘管人群眾多，交通順暢且沒有發生事故。這要歸功於靈活的交通管制政策，例如關閉道路區域供行人使用，以及近500名警察和志願交通管制員。 Additionally, Taipei Metro arranged for every other MRT train to pass by the Sun Yet-sen Memorial Hall station without stopping to increase efficiency. The station’s exits were also under traffic control, while Ministry of Transportation and Communications staff members and volunteers, working with the innovative Skeleton-Print Technology that analyzes people’s postures and actions, monitored the crowd’s movements. 此外，台北捷運安排每隔一列捷運車經過國父紀念館站而不停靠以提高效率。該站的出口也在交通管制之下，交通部工作人員和志願者與創新的骨架印刷技術合作，分析人們的姿勢和行為以監控人群的動向。 Topic: Taiwan restaurant bans Tiktok use following Japan's Sushiro incident A restaurant in Kaohsiung’s decision to ban the use of TikTok on its premises has generated controversy on social media. 高雄一家餐廳禁止在其餐廳內使用TikTok的決定在社交媒體上引起了爭議。 On Tuesday (Feb. 7), “Fishers’ Diner” (釣客食堂) wrote in a Facebook post, “Considering the previous incident where someone unhygienically licked public utensils at a large chain restaurant for a TikTok video, we have specially printed 300 stickers to gift to our friends! We also announce that starting today, any TikTok video-making is banned at our restaurant, and TikTok influencers are banned from entering! This is to avoid thoughtless licking.” 星期二（2月7日），「釣客食堂」（Fishers' Diner）在Facebook上發布了一則貼文：「考慮到以前有人在大型連鎖餐廳為了TikTok視頻而不衛生的舔公共餐具的事件，我們特別印製了300張貼紙送給我們的朋友！我們還宣布，從今天開始，任何TikTok影片製作都在我們的餐廳被禁止，TikTok創作者也被禁止進入！這是為了避免無腦的行為。」 分享時間               Have you seen the Taiwan Lantern Festival in Taipei? What is your favorite part of the Lantern Festival?Should social media challenges be banned? Why and why not?

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K521: About Thailand - Thai hotel sets Guinness world record with largest Negroni cocktail A hotel in the Thai capital set a Guinness World Record by stirring up the world’s largest Negroni cocktail, with more than 630 litres (1,109 pints) of the bitter Italian drink. 泰國首都一家飯店創下金氏世界紀錄，調製出世界最大杯的義大利苦口飲料尼格羅尼雞尾酒，總量超過630公升（1109品脫）。 Mixologists at the Kimpton Maa-Lai Bangkok Hotel poured dozens of bottles of the key ingredients - gin, vermouth, and Campari - into an iced acrylic container which is 1.7m tall and weighing about 400 kg. 曼谷金普頓馬瀨飯店的調酒師將數十瓶琴酒、苦艾酒和金巴利酒等主要材料，倒入一個1.7公尺高、約400公斤重的冰鎮壓克力容器中。 The previous record was 504 litres, said Guinness adjudicator Kazuyoshi Kirimura, who added that the hotel was required to bottle and distribute the entire concoction within the next couple of months. 金氏世界紀錄認證官桐村和義（音譯）表示，先前的紀錄是504公升。他也補充道，該飯店必須在接下來數月內將所有雞尾酒裝瓶及分送。 Next Article ’CIA’-like street food vendors first on scene to feed Thai protesters 「如中情局般」的小吃攤販率先抵達現場餵飽泰國示威者 With an intelligence network so good they have been compared to the CIA, Thai street vendors are often first on the scene at "guerilla" democracy protests in Bangkok, where they hawk sour pork and fishballs to a democracy-hungry crowd. 靠著一套厲害到被拿來與美國中央情報局相提並論的情報網，街頭小吃攤通常是率先抵達曼谷民主示威「游擊戰」現場的一群，向渴望民主的群眾兜售酸肉、魚丸。 After a government crackdown last week, protest groups have begun keeping the venues for their demonstrations secret until the last minute, in a bid to outsmart authorities. 經過上週政府鎮壓後，抗爭團體為了智取當局，開始將他們的示威活動地點保密到最後一刻。 But protesters have quickly noticed that they are often second on the scene, behind food vendors setting up their carts and readying themselves for a busy night of brisk sales. 但是示威者很快就發現，小吃攤常比他們搶先一步到那裡設攤，準備迎接生意火熱的一夜。 Meatball seller Rattapol Sukpa says he stays ahead of the curve by monitoring Facebook for hints of the latest locations, and is in constant contact with other vendors who tip each other off. 賣肉丸的拉塔波說，他觀察臉書上最新示威地點線索，與其他互相通報消息的小販保持聯繫，領先示威者一步。Source article: https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/world/paper/1564829 ; https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/world/paper/1414951

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K520: About Tech - Robot that stocks drinks is newest thing at the corner store A small robot with a clip-like hand and enough smarts to know which drinks are popular is to make convenience stores even more convenient. 一組體型小巧、手掌像剪刀，且聰明到能夠分辨哪一種飲料受歡迎的機器人，將讓便利商店更加便利。 On a recent day in Tokyo, the robot named TX SCARA slid back and forth behind the refrigerated shelves in the back of a FamilyMart store. 近期在東京的某一天，這組名叫TX SCARA的機器人在一家全家便利商店備貨區的冷藏架後方來回滑動。 The hand on the end of its mechanical arm grasped a bottle or can from the stacks, then the robot slithered to the right spot and placed the drink on the shelf — in a place chosen after its artificial intelligence and tiny cameras matched the kind of beverage to what’s running short. 它機械手臂尾端的手掌，從貨物堆中抓起一個瓶子或罐子，接著滑行到正確的位置，把飲料放到架上。它是在利用人工智慧和迷你攝影機比對缺貨中的飲品後，選擇要移動到哪一個位置。 The beverage shelves in the back are farthest from the cash register, keeping workers running back and forth. And the beverage space is refrigerated, uncomfortably cold for people to stay there too many hours. 商店後方的飲料架距離櫃台最遠，員工得來回奔走，而且飲料區為冷藏空間，人待在裡頭好幾小時會冷到不舒服。 Next Article A new supercomputer just set a world record for speed一台新的超級電腦速度刷新世界紀錄 A new supercomputer just passed a major milestone. 一台新的超級電腦剛越過一個重大里程碑。 It is the first to officially reach the “exascale.” That means it can perform at least a quintillion calculations per second. 它是第一台正式達到百億億次級計算的電腦。這表示它每秒執行計算的次數可達到至少一百京。 The new computer is called Frontier. 這台新電腦名為邊界。 That’s a ranking of the world’s speediest supercomputers updated twice each year. 那是一個世界上最快速的超級電腦的排名，每年更新兩次。 Such fast computing could help research in physics, medicine and many other fields. Scientists in those fields often need to make complex calculations which would take too long to do with a normal computer. 如此快速的計算有助於物理、醫學和很多其他領域的研究。這些領域的科學家時常需要操作複雜的計算，使用一般電腦會費時許久。 But a machine like Frontier manage it. 但是像邊界這樣的機器能夠順利完成。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1562314 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1565338

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments Summary: 討論文章: https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4788498 Netflix, Disney+, and KKTV streaming services are releasing original TV series and drama in droves. The TV generation is accustomed to scheduled programmes that is aired at specific time slots during the day. Growing up with TV series and drama, Angel and I discuss our favorite dramas and what we remember of them. Tell us down below which TV series or drama is your favorite!歡迎投稿有趣的主題給醬老師與Angel老師 Comment down below! Vocabulary: 1. Adaptation n. 改編 The TV series Meteor Garden is an adaptation of the manga, Boys over flowers. 電視劇流星花園是漫畫花樣男子改編的。 2. Award-winning tv series n. 得獎影集 Light the night and Gold leaf are popular and award-winning tv series. 華燈初上與茶金是熱門得獎影集。 3. Binge-watch v. 追劇 Thanks to Netflix, we now binge-watch TV series around the world. 多虧了Netflix，我們現在可以追國際不同的影劇。 更多Vocab Podcast節目: https://www.15mins.today/vocab 歡迎主題投稿/意見回覆 : [email protected] 商業合作/贊助來信：[email protected]

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K519: Divided US Republicans name Kevin McCarthy House speaker Republican favorite Kevin McCarthy was finally elected speaker of the US House of Representatives early Saturday last week, ending a paralyzing standoff with right-wing holdouts that raised concerns about his party’s ability to exercise power in Congress. 上週六凌晨，共和黨熱門人選凱文‧麥卡錫終於當選美國眾議院議長，結束了與右翼勢力的僵持局面，這僵局令人對共和黨是否能在國會行使權力感到憂心。 McCarthy’s victory required an historic 15 rounds of voting and was secured only after a late-night session of high drama that saw Republican members almost come to blows as tempers flared. 經過了歷史性的15輪投票，議事挑燈夜戰、共和黨成員幾乎上演全武行的火爆場面後，麥卡錫才得以勝出。 It also required major concessions to the small group of Republican conservatives who had opposed his candidacy, and turned what would normally be a showcase of party unity into a days-long display of internal division. 麥卡錫之所以能勝選，其中因素還包括反對他參選的一小群共和黨保守派做出重大讓步，讓這通常是展示黨內團結的場合變成長達數天的內部分裂家醜外揚。 The speaker wields key influence in Washington by presiding over House business and is second in line to the presidency, after the vice president. 美國眾議院議長在華盛頓主持眾議院事務，影響力很大，是美國總統的第二順位繼承人，僅次於副總統。 As he accepted the gavel in the early hours of Saturday, McCarthy, who was backed by former US president Donald Trump, outlined the Republicans’ aggressive lines of attack ahead of the 2024 presidential race. 獲前總統唐納‧川普背書的麥卡錫，在接下議事槌時概述了共和黨在2024年總統大選之前的激進路線。 He vowed to “pass bills to fix the nation’s challenges, from the wide open Southern border to ‘America last’ energy policies, to woke indoctrination in our schools.” 他誓言「通過法案來解決國家所面臨的挑戰，從門戶洞開的南部邊境到『美國最後』的能源政策，再到我們學校中的思想覺醒」。 On “America’s long-term challenges -- the debt and the rise of the Chinese Communist Party -- Congress must be with one voice,” the 57-year-old Californian told the House. 這位57歲的加州人對眾議院表示，「對於美國的長期挑戰——債務和中國共產黨的崛起——國會必須口徑一致」。 McCarthy, who represents the conservative enclave of Bakersfield, California, has been in politics since his late teens. The son of a firefighter and grandson of a cattle rancher, he married his high school sweetheart. 麥卡錫代表加州的保守派飛地貝克斯菲爾德，他從十多歲就踏入政壇。 他是消防員之子、養牛場主之孫，娶了高中時代的戀人為妻。 His career has soared since he became the minority Republican leader in the California Assembly in 2003, just one year after being elected. 當選加州議員僅一年後，他在2003年成為加州議會的少數派共和黨領袖，自此他的從政之路步步高升。 Four years later, he was elected to Washington, and moved rapidly up the ladder in the House as a team player and organizer who readily bared his ambition to become party leader. 四年後，他獲選進入華盛頓國會殿堂，並作為合群的團隊成員及動員者在眾議院迅速晉升，並毫不遲疑展現成為黨魁的抱負。 Affable in the face of adversity, and a prolific fundraiser for his fellow lawmakers, McCarthy is no policy strategist or conservative ideologue. 麥卡錫在逆境中表現得和藹可親，且經常為其他議員募款，他既不是政策戰略家，也不是保守派思想家。 Instead, his rise has come from his willingness to tackle the tricky task of trying to keep his party -- which has been turned upside down by Trump -- on the rails and focused on opposing the Democrats’ agenda. 相反地，他的崛起是因為他願意解決一項棘手的任務，即試圖讓他的政黨——已經被川普搞得天翻地覆——保持正常運轉，並聚焦反對民主黨的議程。 But it remains to be seen if he can charm hardline conservative dissidents. McCarthy’s seeming lack of deep ideological underpinnings and his skepticism of party hardliners has made him a regular target of the Republican right, especially Trump supporters. 但他是否能夠吸引持不同政見的強硬保守派，仍有待觀察。 麥卡錫似乎缺乏深刻的意識形態基礎，而且他對黨內強硬派持懷疑態度，這使他經常成為共和黨右翼的攻擊目標，尤其是川普的支持者。 Source article: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2023/01/10/2003792288

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K518: Prestige Films, Made for Oscar, Fail to Impress A year ago, Hollywood watched in despair as Oscar-oriented films like “Licorice Pizza” and “Nightmare Alley” flatlined at the box office. The day seemed to have finally arrived when prestige films were no longer viable in theaters and streaming had forever altered cinema. 一年前，好萊塢絕望地看著以奧斯卡獎為目標的「甘草糖披薩」和「夜路」處於票房低谷。這一天似乎終於來了，藝術導向的電影無法在電影院存活，串流媒體永遠改變影業。 But studios held out hope, deciding that November 2022 would give a more accurate reading of the marketplace. By then, the coronavirus would not be such a complicating factor. This fall would be a “last stand,” as some put it, a chance to show that more than superheroes and sequels could succeed. 然而，片廠仍抱持希望，認為2022年11月能更準確解讀市場。屆時，新冠疫情就不會是如此複雜的因素。正如一些人所說，今年秋季會是「最後一搏」，是證明不是只有超級英雄和續集能在電影院大賣的機會。 It has been carnage. 結果是場大屠殺。 One after another, films for grown-ups have failed to find an audience big enough to justify their cost. “Armageddon Time” cost roughly $30 million to make and market and collected $1.9 million at the North American box office. “Tár” cost at least $35 million, including marketing; ticket sales total $5.3 million. Universal spent around $55 million to make and market “She Said,” which also took in $5.3 million. “Devotion” cost well over $100 million and has generated $14 million in ticket sales. 一部接一部供成人觀賞的電影未能吸引夠多觀眾，以打平製作成本。10月在美國上映的「世界末日」斥資約3000萬美元製作和行銷，在北美獲190萬美元票房。「Tár塔爾」包含行銷斥資至少3500萬美元，票房收入只有530萬美元。環球影業花費約5500萬元製作和行銷「她有話要說」，票房也只有530萬美元。「決戰38度線」製片成本遠超過1億美元，創造1400萬美元票房。 Even a charmer from box office king Steven Spielberg has gotten off to a humdrum start. “The Fabelmans,” based on Spielberg’s adolescence, has collected $5.7 million in four weeks of limited play. Its budget was $40 million, not including marketing. 即使是票房之王史蒂芬史匹柏的討喜之作，也只落得差強人意的起步。以史蒂芬史匹柏青少年時期為藍本的電影「法貝爾曼」以有限上映方式播放四周，創造570萬美元票房。該片預算為4000萬美元，不包括行銷。 What is going on? 這是怎麼回事？ The problem is not quality; reviews have been exceptional. Rather, “people have grown comfortable watching these movies at home,” said David A. Gross, a film consultant who publishes a newsletter on box office numbers. 問題不在品質，這些電影一直被評為傑出作品。出版票房數據簡報的電影顧問格羅斯表示，原因反是「人們日益習慣在家中觀賞」。 Ever since Oscar-oriented films began showing up on streaming services in the late 2010s, Hollywood has worried that such movies would someday vanish from multiplexes. The diminishing importance of big screens was accentuated in March when, for the first time, a streaming film, “CODA,” from Apple TV+, won the Academy Award for best picture. 2010年代晚期，這些以奧斯卡為目標的電影開始出現在串流媒體，好萊塢就開始擔心這類電影總有一天會從影城消失。大螢幕重要性的式微在3月更明顯，當時Apple TV+推出的「樂動心旋律」獲得奧斯卡最佳影片獎，是串流電影首例。 This is about more than money. Hollywood sees the shift as an affront to its identity. Film power players have long clung to the fantasy that the cultural world revolves around them, as if it were 1940. But that delusion is hard to sustain when their lone measuring stick — bodies in seats — reveals that the masses can’t be bothered to come watch the films that they prize most. Hollywood equates this with cultural irrelevancy. 這不僅是錢的問題。好萊塢認為這種變遷是侮辱其身分。電影製片大廠長久以來抱持文藝界繞著他們轉動的幻想，好像現在還是1940年。但這種錯覺難以維持，因為作為他們唯一衡量標準的觀眾人數顯示，民眾懶得前往電影院觀賞他們最重視的電影。好萊塢卻以不合時宜的觀點看待此事。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6925560

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments Topic: Macron Tries to Get France to Work The sign on the window of Red Rhino, a popular barbecue restaurant in central Paris, has been up for a month: “Closed until further notice due to lack of personnel.” Bus and train service has been cut back in the tourist city of Lyon amid a dearth of drivers. In the Loire Valley, tons of vegetables went unharvested in the summer as thousands of picking jobs were left unfilled. 法國巴黎市中心一家人氣燒烤店「紅犀牛」櫥窗招牌已立了一個月：「人手不足，暫停營業至另行通知」。因司機不足，東南部觀光城市里昂的客運和鐵路已減班。在西部羅亞爾河谷，由於數千個採菜工作懸缺，去年夏季有成噸蔬菜無人採收。 Economic activity has fitfully revved up again in France and across Europe since the end of COVID-19 lockdowns, only to be knocked back by the effects of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Even so, employers in numerous industries remain desperate to hire, with a range of businesses still not finding the workers needed to operate at capacity. 新冠疫情防疫封鎖結束以來，法國乃至全歐洲的經濟活動已陸續再次活絡，孰料又遭俄烏戰爭效應擊退。儘管如此，諸多產業的雇主依然需人孔急，一些企業仍未覓得產能全開所需的勞工。 All of which has prompted France, Europe’s second-largest economy, to seek a variety of solutions — all of them politically combustible. 這些狀況已促使歐洲第二大經濟體法國尋求各種解決之道，而這些解方都會引爆政治爭議。 President Emmanuel Macron’s government is proposing a fast-track legalization for migrants in the country illegally who want to work in sectors facing staff shortages. 總統馬克宏領導的政府提議，非法居留法國的移民若願意在面臨缺工行業上班，就可快速合法化。 For added measure, the government is moving to tighten France’s famously generous unemployment system, with its lengthy benefits, in a bid to cycle jobless people more quickly back into the workforce. 馬克宏政府還採額外措施，收緊以長期給付而慷慨聞名的法國失業制度，設法加快失業者重回職場的周期。 The plans have met with resistance from different ends of the political spectrum. Lawmakers from France’s rising far right say a growing influx of migrants must be brought under tighter control and that French nationals should be given priority for jobs. The country’s powerful labor unions are warning that measures to cut jobless benefits risk pushing the unemployed toward poverty. 相關改革計畫已招致法國政治光譜兩端的反對。法國崛起的極右派國會議員指稱，愈來愈多移民湧入，必須更嚴格控制，法國國民應享有優先工作權。法國強勢的工會正警告，削減失業給付恐將失業者推向貧困。 For thousands of businesses that form the backbone of the economy, the double-barreled approach has become necessary to help fix to what appears to be a permanent shift in workplace dynamics since the pandemic, as European workers in droves switch jobs or decide not to return to strenuous work that demands early or late hours on relatively low pay. Over half a million people in France resigned in the first three months of the year, the highest level in 15 years, France’s statistics agency reported. 對形成法國經濟骨幹的數以千計企業而言，前述雙管齊下方法已不可或缺，才能有助化解新冠疫情以來職場動態似乎出現的永久性轉變，也就是歐洲大批勞工換工作，或決定不回到相對低薪還要求一早或很晚上班的勞累工作。法國統計局通報，2022年第一季全法有50多萬人辭職，創15年來新高。 “Our society after the pandemic has a different outlook,” said Thierry Marx, a Michelin-starred French chef who is the president of UMIH, France’s influential trade association of restaurants and hotels. “People are saying, I don’t want to have a sacrificial relationship to work.” 法國頗具影響力的餐廳與旅館同業公會「旅館餐飲職業產業聯盟」主席、法籍「米其林」星級主廚馬克斯說，「疫情之後我們社會出現一個不同的觀點，如今人們會說，我不想為工作犧牲奉獻」。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6909797 Next Article Topic: Wanted in France: Thousands of Workers as Hotels and Restaurants Reopen For six months, Christophe Thiriet has waited for France’s grinding national lockdowns to be lifted so he can reopen his company’s restaurants and hotels in a picturesque corner of eastern France and recall the 150 employees who were furloughed months ago. 六個月來，克里斯多弗．提希耶一直等待折磨人的法國全國封城解除，好讓公司設在如詩如畫的法國東部的餐廳和飯店能重新開張，並召回數個月前放無薪假的一百五十位員工。 But when he asked them to return for a reopening in mid-May, he faced an unexpected headache: At least 30 said they wouldn’t be coming back, leaving him scrambling to hire new workers just as he needed to swing into action. 但是當他要求他們於五月中旬重新開業時復職，卻面臨意料之外的頭痛狀況：至少三十人說他們不會回來，讓他在需要積極展開行動之際急著雇請新員工。 “When you close things for so long, people think twice about whether they want to stay,” said Thiriet, a co-manager of the Heintz Group. 「當你關店太久，人們會三思是否要留下。」海因茲集團共同經理人提希耶說。 Restaurants and hotels across the country are facing the same problem. After months on furlough, workers in droves are deciding not to return to jobs in the hospitality industry. 全國各地的餐廳和飯店正面臨相同問題。在數個月的無薪假後，成群的勞工決定不返回在餐旅業的工作。 A shortfall of perhaps as many as 100,000 restaurant and hotel workers is especially troubling, because hundreds of thousands of people are looking for work after France’s worst recession in decades. Employers say it is becoming harder to lure job seekers to an industry whose future is more or less tethered to the vagaries of the coronavirus and the uncertainty of vaccine campaigns. 餐廳和飯店工作者的短缺可能多達十萬人，這一點格外令人憂慮，因為在法國經歷數十年來最嚴重的經濟衰退後，此際有數十萬人正在找工作。雇主說，這個產業未來或多或少受制於新冠病毒的變化莫測，以及疫苗推廣的不確定性，要吸引求職者變得更困難。 The missing manpower conundrum has emerged as thousands of hotels and restaurants that survived the crisis pivot toward trying to make up for an 80% plunge in busines

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 即刻加入15Mins通勤學英語直播室，每週一9pm等你來說英文 : https://15minsengcafe.pse.is/46hm8k 主題: 英語慣用語系列 – 運動相關的慣用語 Sports related idioms 1. To drop the ball – 犯錯了/失誤了 Example: “You dropped the ball when you rejected that job offer.” When you drop the ball, it means you made a stupid mistake or forgot something really important. In some situations, it also means you have given up before reaching your goal…which is definitely a mistake! 2. To give your best shot- 做出最好 Example: “Give this audition your best shot – you won’t regret it!” Sometimes we feel insecure and worried, but we want something so much that we still decide to go after it. It could be a job interview, an audition, getting a date or moving abroad. In those situations, we must “give our best shot” – this means trying your best. 3. To be out of (someone’s) league- 高攀不上 Example: “She will never want to date me, look at her! She’s out of my league.” When somebody is out of your league, it means they are much better or more successful than you are. 4. To stay ahead of the game- 保持領先 Example: “The deadline for the report is tomorrow, but I want to be ahead of the game, so I finished it yesterday.” A smart way to be professional is to be prepared. Sometimes we have to predict what our competitors will do and know what their next move is going to be. 5. To throw in the towel- 放棄/投降 Example: “Are you going to throw in the towel just because your boss fired you? You can’t! Get up and look for a new job!” Have you ever felt like giving up on something that felt very important to you? Maybe you were tired, exhausted, frustrated. If your answer is yes, it means you have wanted to “throw in the towel”. 練習時間: 請使用二到三個慣用語來分享自身小故事 Please think of two to three scenarios where you can use sports related idioms or share a story.

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K517: About regulations - Obnoxiously loud car? A traffic camera might be listening After the relative quiet of the pandemic, New York City has come roaring back. Just listen: Jackhammers. Honking cars and trucks. Rumbling subway trains. Sirens. Shouting. 在（武漢肺炎）疫情大流行期間的相對寧靜後，紐約市已開始咆哮回來。只要傾聽：電鑽、鳴喇叭的汽車和卡車、轟隆作響的地鐵、警報器、呼喊。 Over the years, there have been numerous efforts to quiet the cacophony. One of the latest: traffic cameras equipped with sound meters capable of identifying souped-up cars and motorbikes emitting an illegal amount of street noise. 多年來，人們做出許多努力來平息這種噪音。其中一項最新努力：配備聲級計的交通攝影機，能夠識別發出非法街頭噪音的改裝汽車和摩托車。 At least 71 drivers have gotten tickets so far for violating noise rules during a yearlong pilot program of the system. The city’s Department of Environmental Protection now has plans to expand the use of the roadside sound meters. 在該系統為期1年的試驗期間，迄今至少有71名司機因違反噪音規定而收到罰單。紐約市環保局現在計畫擴大路邊聲級計的使用範圍。 New York City already has one of the most extensive noise ordinances in the country, setting allowable levels for a host of noisemakers, such as jackhammers and vehicles. 紐約市的規定是全美範圍最廣泛的噪音法規之一，為許多噪音製造者設定了可容許的標準，例如電鑽和車輛。 Next Article New smoking ban starts at Miami Beach parks and beaches新禁煙令從邁阿密海灘市的公園與海灘開始實施 Starting New Year’s Day, you can still wear bikinis on the beaches of Miami Beach, but forget about showing any butts — cigarette butts, that is. 元旦開始，你還是可以在邁阿密海灘市的海灘穿比基尼，但別想秀屁股——是說煙屁股。 A smoking ban is being implemented Sunday after the stroke of midnight at all Miami Beach municipal parks and public beaches. Under the new measure, a person can be fined $100 and spend up to 60 days in jail for a first-time violation. 週日午夜鐘聲響後，所有邁阿密海灘市市立公園和公共海灘實施起禁煙令。根據新措施，民眾首次違規即可罰100美元並坐牢最多60天。 Miami Beach City Commissioner Alex Fernandez said he sponsored the measure to keep the city’s beaches pristine and protect sea turtles, seabirds and other wildlife. According to the Ocean Conservancy, cigarette butts are the most commonly recovered item during coastal cleanup efforts. 邁阿密海灘市市政委員亞歷克斯．費爾南德斯說，他支持這項措施以保該市海灘不受污染，並保護海龜、海鳥和其他野生生物。根據海洋保護協會，煙頭是沿海清理工作中最常被回收的物品。 “This paradise is an important economic engine,” Fernandez said in a statement. “Cigarette butts are not the butts our 18 million visitors want to see. This new law will help keep our paradise clean and beautiful.” 「這個天堂是個重要的經濟引擎」，費爾南德斯在一份聲明中說道。「煙蒂不是我們1800萬名遊客想看的屁股。這部新法將有助我們的天堂保持乾淨美麗。」Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1563904 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1562621

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K516: About soccer - Neymar ’psychologically destroyed’ by World Cup exit Neymar said Saturday he was "psychologically destroyed" by Brazil’s elimination from the World Cup in a penalty shootout defeat to Croatia and admitted it hurt more than any other loss in his career. 內馬爾週六說，巴西在12碼戰中敗給克羅埃西亞，從世界盃中淘汰，令他「心理上被擊垮」，並且承認此事對他的傷害，超過他生涯中其他任何一場敗仗。 Neymar scored a superb individual effort to equal Pele’s record goalscoring haul of 77 goals for the Selecao in Friday’s match that finished 1-1 after extra time. 週五的比賽經過延長賽後，以1比1平手，內馬爾在這場比賽中締造個人絕佳成績，追平比利為巴西國家足球隊踢進77球的紀錄。 But he never got to take a spot kick in the shootout that Croatia won 4-2 to move into the semi-finals. 但是他在12碼大戰中還沒上陣，克羅埃西亞就以4比2獲勝進入準決賽。 "I am psychologically destroyed," Neymar said in an Instagram message. 「我心理上被擊垮」，內馬爾在Instagram上發文說。 Next Article Germany crash out of World Cup despite 4-2 defeat of Costa Rica （儘管以4比2擊敗哥斯大黎加，德國仍在世界盃中被淘汰） Germany crashed out of the World Cup at the group stage for the second time in succession despite a 4-2 win against Costa Rica on Thursday. 德國儘管在週四以4比2贏得對哥斯大黎加之戰，但仍連續第2屆在世界盃小組賽階段就被淘汰出局。 The four-time World Cup winners came into the match needing a win but were also relying on the result of Japan’s game with Spain to progress. 這支4屆世界盃冠軍贏家帶著需要一場勝利展開這場比賽，但要晉級也得看日本與西班牙之戰的結果。 But the Germans were eliminated due to goal difference as Japan followed up their defeat of Germany with another shock result by beating Spain 2-1. 不過，在日本繼擊敗德國隊，再次爆冷以2比1擊敗西班牙之後，由於進球數差異，德國遭到淘汰。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1563324 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1562052

歡迎留言或投稿告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments Summary: 討論文章: https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/4769725 Netizens in Taiwan are outraged by the 2 make-up days in February. Taiwan happens to be the only country that has make-up days in exchange for days taken off to allow for long weekends. What is the rationale behind this sytem? Why don't you comment down below whether you like make-up days or not！歡迎投稿有趣的主題給醬老師與Angel老師 Comment down below! Vocabulary: 1. Make-up day n. 彈性補班/補課 February 18th is a make-up day for a day off on the 27th. 二月十八要補二十七日的放假。 2. Dilemma n. 窘境/進退兩難 No work no pay puts freelancers in a dilemma on a weekend make-up day. 沒工作就沒有錢讓自由工作者在週末補班進退兩難。 3. Standby n. 待命 LINE groups today puts all employees on standby. 現在LINE群組讓所有員工都處於待命狀態。 更多Vocab Podcast節目: https://www.15mins.today/vocab 歡迎主題投稿/意見回覆 : [email protected] 商業合作/贊助來信：[email protected]

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K515: Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody’ Review: Her Lonely Heart Calls No one could sing like Whitney Houston, and Kasi Lemmons, the director of the biopic “Whitney Houston: I Wanna Dance With Somebody,” only rarely asks her lead, Naomi Ackie, to try. This is a jukebox retelling of Houston’s parabola from sweatshirts to sequins, from church choir girl to tabloid fixture, from her teenage romance with Robyn Crawford, the woman who would continue on as her creative director, to her volatile marriage to Bobby Brown, who slithers into the movie licking his lips like he’s hungry to eat her alive. 沒有人能像惠妮休斯頓那樣唱歌，而惠妮休斯頓傳記電影「與你共舞」導演卡茜萊蒙斯，也沒有要求她的女主角娜歐蜜艾基如此做。這部片改編自惠妮一生的高低起伏與光碟點唱機般的金曲匯集，涵蓋她從運動衫穿到亮片禮服，從教會唱詩班女孩到八卦報刊熟面孔，從她青少女時期與羅蘋克勞福的一段情，這位女性後來成為她的創意總監，還有她和巴比布朗不穩定的婚姻，他潛伏在片中舔著嘴唇的樣子，彷彿恨不得生吞她。 Those beats are here. But it’s the melodies that matter, those moments when Ackie opens her mouth to channel Houston’s previously recorded songs. We’ve heard Houston’s rendition of “I Will Always Love You” countless times, and Lemmons bets, correctly, that the beloved hit will still seize us by the heart during the rather forthright montage she pairs with it, images of Houston marrying Brown, birthing her daughter Bobbi Kristina and honoring Nelson Mandela underneath a sky filled with fireworks. 這些情節盡在其中，然而當艾基開口和惠妮生前錄製歌曲對嘴的那些片段出現，音樂才是本片的重點。我們聽過惠妮演繹「我會永遠愛你」無數次，而萊蒙斯確信，這首備受喜愛的金曲，在她拼貼相對而言平鋪直敘的畫面播放之際，仍然能牢牢抓住我們的心，這些畫面包括惠妮和巴比布朗結婚，她生下女兒芭比．克莉斯汀娜，以及在煙火絢爛的天空下為曼德拉獻唱。 Ackie doesn’t much resemble the superstar, although her carriage is correct: eyes closed, head flung back, arms pushing away the air as if to make room for that mezzo-soprano. That the film sticks to Houston’s surfaces is half excusable. Screenwriter Anthony McCarten seems to find that the woman underneath the pop star shell was still struggling to define herself at the time of her death at the age of 48. At Houston’s final “Oprah” performance, re-created here, she belts an earnest ballad called, “I Didn’t Know My Own Strength.” 艾基和這位超級巨星並沒有那麼神似，但是她表演的神態是正確的：閉著雙眼，頭微微後仰，雙手向空中伸展，彷彿要為這位次女高音歌手開展空間。這部片執著於惠妮的表面，至少有一部分算是情有可原。編劇安東尼．麥卡坦似乎發現到這位在流行樂巨星外皮底下的女性真貌，直到48歲去世之前，她一直掙扎於定義自我。片中重現惠妮最後一次在「歐普拉溫芙蕾秀」的演出，她發自肺腑的高唱歌曲「我不知道我的力量（或譯「心的力量」）」。 Houston didn’t write her own material; she just sang like she did, courtesy of Cissy’s fastidious coaching. “God gives you a gift, you got to use it right,” Cissy lectures. Yet, Houston as seen here can only say yes or no to other people’s ideas of what she should sing, wear and do. Increasingly, she chooses opposition. Her successes are shared — but her mistakes are all hers. 惠妮自己沒有寫歌，她只是在母親西西嚴格的近身訓練下，照她所會的方式唱歌。「上帝給了妳這項天賦，妳必須好好使用。」西西如此訓誡。然而，關於她應該唱什麼歌，穿什麼衣服和做什麼事的旁人意見，片中的惠妮只能說好或不。漸漸地，她選擇唱反調。她的成功被大家瓜分，但失敗全歸咎於她一人。 Houston’s defiance is the movie’s attempt to answer the great mystery of her career: why she deliberately damaged her voice through smoking and hard drugs. “It’s like leaving a Stradivarius in the rain!” the legendary then-head of Arista Records Clive Davis yelps. 惠妮的叛逆，正是這部電影所嘗試解答、她的事業最大謎團：她為何故意用抽菸和毒品來傷害自己的嗓子？「這就像是把史特拉底瓦里琴放在雨中！」時任芒穗唱片老闆的樂壇傳奇人物克萊夫戴維斯大叫。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6892768

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K514: Macron Tries to Get France to Work The sign on the window of Red Rhino, a popular barbecue restaurant in central Paris, has been up for a month: “Closed until further notice due to lack of personnel.” Bus and train service has been cut back in the tourist city of Lyon amid a dearth of drivers. In the Loire Valley, tons of vegetables went unharvested in the summer as thousands of picking jobs were left unfilled. 法國巴黎市中心一家人氣燒烤店「紅犀牛」櫥窗招牌已立了一個月：「人手不足，暫停營業至另行通知」。因司機不足，東南部觀光城市里昂的客運和鐵路已減班。在西部羅亞爾河谷，由於數千個採菜工作懸缺，去年夏季有成噸蔬菜無人採收。 Economic activity has fitfully revved up again in France and across Europe since the end of COVID-19 lockdowns, only to be knocked back by the effects of Russia’s war in Ukraine. Even so, employers in numerous industries remain desperate to hire, with a range of businesses still not finding the workers needed to operate at capacity. 新冠疫情防疫封鎖結束以來，法國乃至全歐洲的經濟活動已陸續再次活絡，孰料又遭俄烏戰爭效應擊退。儘管如此，諸多產業的雇主依然需人孔急，一些企業仍未覓得產能全開所需的勞工。 All of which has prompted France, Europe’s second-largest economy, to seek a variety of solutions — all of them politically combustible. 這些狀況已促使歐洲第二大經濟體法國尋求各種解決之道，而這些解方都會引爆政治爭議。 President Emmanuel Macron’s government is proposing a fast-track legalization for migrants in the country illegally who want to work in sectors facing staff shortages. 總統馬克宏領導的政府提議，非法居留法國的移民若願意在面臨缺工行業上班，就可快速合法化。 For added measure, the government is moving to tighten France’s famously generous unemployment system, with its lengthy benefits, in a bid to cycle jobless people more quickly back into the workforce. 馬克宏政府還採額外措施，收緊以長期給付而慷慨聞名的法國失業制度，設法加快失業者重回職場的周期。 The plans have met with resistance from different ends of the political spectrum. Lawmakers from France’s rising far right say a growing influx of migrants must be brought under tighter control and that French nationals should be given priority for jobs. The country’s powerful labor unions are warning that measures to cut jobless benefits risk pushing the unemployed toward poverty. 相關改革計畫已招致法國政治光譜兩端的反對。法國崛起的極右派國會議員指稱，愈來愈多移民湧入，必須更嚴格控制，法國國民應享有優先工作權。法國強勢的工會正警告，削減失業給付恐將失業者推向貧困。 For thousands of businesses that form the backbone of the economy, the double-barreled approach has become necessary to help fix to what appears to be a permanent shift in workplace dynamics since the pandemic, as European workers in droves switch jobs or decide not to return to strenuous work that demands early or late hours on relatively low pay. Over half a million people in France resigned in the first three months of the year, the highest level in 15 years, France’s statistics agency reported. 對形成法國經濟骨幹的數以千計企業而言，前述雙管齊下方法已不可或缺，才能有助化解新冠疫情以來職場動態似乎出現的永久性轉變，也就是歐洲大批勞工換工作，或決定不回到相對低薪還要求一早或很晚上班的勞累工作。法國統計局通報，2022年第一季全法有50多萬人辭職，創15年來新高。 “Our society after the pandemic has a different outlook,” said Thierry Marx, a Michelin-starred French chef who is the president of UMIH, France’s influential trade association of restaurants and hotels. “People are saying, I don’t want to have a sacrificial relationship to work.” 法國頗具影響力的餐廳與旅館同業公會「旅館餐飲職業產業聯盟」主席、法籍「米其林」星級主廚馬克斯說，「疫情之後我們社會出現一個不同的觀點，如今人們會說，我不想為工作犧牲奉獻」。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6909797

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments Topic: Collins Dictionary picks ‘NFT’ as word of the year C ollins Dictionary has chosen the term NFT as its word of the year after surging interest in the digital tokens that can sell for millions of dollars brought it into the mainstream. 《柯林斯詞典》於近日選出「NFT」為年度詞彙！該數位貨幣交易動輒高達數百萬美元，各界對它的興趣大增，並成功打入主流市場。 NFT is short for non-fungible token. Collins defines it as “a unique digital certificate, registered in a blockchain, that is used to record ownership of an asset such as an artwork or a collectible.” NFT是「非同質代幣」的縮寫，《柯林斯詞典》將NFT定義為「一種基於區塊鏈的獨特數位認證，用於記錄藝術品或收藏品等資產的所有權。」 Most people didn’t know what an NFT was until this year, when sales boomed, sparked in large part by artist Beeple’s March auction of a digital collage NFT for nearly US$70 million (approximately NT$2 billion). Experts at Collins said they chose NFT because of its “meteoric rise in usage,” up 11,000 percent this year. 人們原本對NFT很陌生，但自從數位藝術家畢波今年三月以近七千萬美元（近二十億台幣）的天價，售出一件數位拼貼作品後，NFT熱潮隨即興起，人們紛紛將目光投向NFT市場。柯林斯的專家表示，NFT一詞的使用量「迅速竄升」，今年已增長一百一十倍。 “NFTs seem to be everywhere, from the arts sections to the financial pages and in galleries and auction houses and across social media platforms,” said Alex Beecroft, managing director of Collins Learning. But whether NFT will have a lasting influence is yet to be determined, he added. 「柯林斯學習」的總經理比克羅夫特表示︰「NFT似乎無所不在，從藝術領域到金融版面，並且在畫廊、拍賣會還有社交平台都有它的蹤影。」他補充︰「但NFT是否會產生持久的影響，仍有待觀察。」Source article: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2021/12/06/2003769067 Next Article Topic: Art Museums Are Struggling to Weed Out the Vandals From the Visitors For Hans-Peter Wipplinger, the director of Vienna’s Leopold Museum, the past few weeks have been challenging. As climate protesters across Europe stepped up their attacks against art, Wipplinger took measures to protect his storied collection, which includes famous paintings by Gustav Klimt and Egon Schiele. Bags were banned; coats, too. The museum hired extra guards to patrol its five floors. 對維也納立奧波德博物館館長維普林格來說，過去幾周充滿挑戰。隨著歐洲各地氣候抗議者加大對藝術品的攻擊力道，維普林格採取措施保護他的著名收藏，包括克林姆和席勒的名畫。禁止包包，外套也是。博物館雇用額外警衛巡視五個樓層。 It didn’t work. Last week, members of a group called Last Generation walked into the museum and threw black liquid at one of Klimt’s major works, “Death and Life.” A protester had sneaked the liquid into the museum in a hot water bottle strapped to his chest, Wipplinger said. 但沒有成功，上周一個名為「最後一代」團體的成員走進博物館，向克林姆主要作品之一《死亡與生命》潑灑黑色液體。維普林格說，一名抗議者將這種液體裝在一個熱水瓶內偷偷帶進博物館。 The Klimt, protected by glass, was unharmed. But Wipplinger said his security team could only have stopped the attack by subjecting visitors to invasive body searches, “like at the airport.” He didn’t want to even consider that prospect, he added. 受玻璃保護的克林姆作品雖毫髮無損，但維普林格說，他的保安團隊恐怕只能對訪客進行侵入式搜身 來阻止攻擊，「就像在機場一樣」。他還表示，他甚至不想考慮這一可能性。 With the attacks showing no sign of abating, museum directors across Europe are settling into a nervous new equilibrium, fearful for the works in their care but unwilling to compromise on making visitors feel welcome. So far, nothing has been permanently damaged. But many fear that an accident or an escalation in the protesters’ tactics could result in a masterpiece being destroyed. 由於攻擊沒有減弱跡象，歐洲各地博物館館長正陷入一種緊張的新平衡狀態，擔心自己照顧的作品受到損害，但又不願在讓訪客感覺賓至如歸的問題上妥協。到目前為止，還沒有任何永久性的損壞，但許多人擔心，若發生意外或抗議者升級策略，恐導致名作被毀。 The actions, which began in Britain in June, are already increasing in frequency and daring. At first, protesters glued themselves to the frames of famous paintings, but since footage of activists splattering Vincent Van Gogh’s “Sunflowers” with tomato soup spread rapidly on social media in October, masterpieces have been doused in pea soup, mashed potatoes and flour. 這些行動於6月在英國開始，如今已日益頻繁，愈來愈大膽。最初，抗議者將自己黏在名畫畫框上，但自從10月活動人士向梵谷《向日葵》潑灑番茄湯影片在社群媒體上迅速傳播以來，名作陸續被潑上豌豆湯、馬鈴薯泥以及麵粉。 Those works were all protected by glass, and the protesters’ projectiles never touched an artist’s brushstroke. Yet, last month, protesters in Paris poured orange paint directly onto a silver Charles Ray sculpture outside the Bourse de Commerce contemporary art space. (A Bourse de Commerce spokesperson said the sculpture was cleaned within a few hours.) 這些作品都有玻璃保護，抗議者的投擲物從未接觸到藝術家的畫作。然而，巴黎的抗議者上月將橘色油漆直接倒在商業交易所當代藝術空間外查爾斯．雷的銀色雕像上。（法國商業交易所一名發言人說，這座雕像在數小時內就被清理乾淨了。） In a statement last month signed by the leaders of more than 90 of the world’s largest art institutions, museum administrators said they were “deeply shaken” by the protesters’ “risky endangerment” of artworks. 在全球90多間最大藝術機構負責人上月簽署的一份聲明中，這些博物館管理人員表示，抗議者對藝術品的「危險危害」，令他們「深感震驚」。 Yet, few museums appear to have taken bold steps to protect their collections. Norway’s National Museum and the Barberini Museum in Potsdam, Germany, have banned visitors from taking bags or jackets into their exhibition halls. Others have made no changes. 然而，似乎很少博物館採取大膽措施保護館藏。挪威國家博物館及德國波茨坦巴貝里尼博物館禁止遊客攜包包或夾克進入展覽廳，其他博物館則未做出任何改變。Source article: https://udn.com/news/story/6904/6828062 Next Article Topic: Piet Mondrian artwork displayed upside d

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 主題：職場系列 - 開工如何歡迎同事歸來Welcome your colleagues back to work Source: https://simplynoted.com/blogs/news/welcome-back-to-work-messages Make it specific. 要具體 Acknowledge what they were doing and why they were away. This shows that you're aware of what's going on in their life and are interested enough to pay attention. This small detail can make a difference in how much your warm welcome back will resonate with them. Share a story about something that happened while they were gone. 分享能夠讓同事快速跟大家接軌的事 This can help your reunited coworker feel more connected with what they missed and give them helpful context as they ease back into their responsibilities. Ask how their break was and then use that knowledge to write a personalized message. 客製化你的歡迎 This is a simple conversation where you get some extra details to add into your message. You might find out where they went on vacation and then use that to add personal flair. Keep it positive! 正向This isn't a "dear sir or madam" message. This is a coworker and a friend! No need to be all business. Share good wishes to help ease your recipients well-being as they do the tough work of easing back into the swing of things. Examples:"We missed you, and we're so glad you're back!" "It's great to have you back in the office!" "We hope you had a great time, and we're happy to have you back."  Return from holidays"We can't wait to hear all about your vacation, welcome back!" "We're excited to have you back and can't wait to see all the amazing photos from your trip." "Welcome home! We missed you and can't wait to hear all about your adventures." Return from maternity leave"You are an amazing mom and we are excited to have you back at work." "Congratulations on your new arrival! We are so excited to have you back at work. Welcome back!" "Welcome home to your work family! We missed you and are so happy you're finally back."Return from sick leave"We're so glad you're feeling better and are able to be back with us again." "Welcome back to work! You were sorely missed but we're glad you're finally back and on the mend." "We hope you're feeling better and can't wait to have you back at work." 

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K513: About Argentina - Argentine artist paints on inflation-hit banknotes Argentina’s cash has lost so much value in recent years that local artist Sergio Guillermo Diaz finds painting on even the most valuable banknotes has become affordable. 阿根廷鈔票的價值近年大幅衰減，以至於當地藝術家塞希歐‧古勒莫‧迪亞茲發現，就算在最有價值的紙幣上作畫，他也能夠負擔。 With annual inflation that likely neared 100% last year, the largest denomination of Argentine currency, the 1,000-peso bill, is worth around $5.60 officially or just $3 on parallel markets commonly used to skirt capital controls. 由於去年通膨年增率逼近100％，阿根廷最大面額貨幣1000披索，在正規市場僅值約5.6美元，在通常用以規避資本管制的平行市場上則僅值3美元。 "Nowadays it makes sense for me to paint on the largest denominated bill here in Argentina. Once I paint on it, I can sell it for much more than what the bill is worth," said Diaz. 迪亞茲說：「現在在阿根廷，我在最大面額的紙幣上作畫並不奇怪，反而畫在上面可以用比紙幣本身高很多的價格賣出去。」 On the banknotes he has painted pictures ranging from soccer star Lionel Messi lifting the World Cup to satirical images about the peso’s sharp depreciation in recent years. 他在紙幣上作畫的主題很多，從足球明星萊昂內爾‧梅西舉起世界盃獎盃，到對阿根廷披索近年狂貶值的諷刺圖案都有。 Next Article Argentina lakes turn pink but the outlook not rosy, environmentalists say 阿根廷湖泊變粉紅色，但環保人士說不妙 Two lakes in a far-flung coastal region of Patagonia, in Argentina, have turned fluorescent pink, as of yet unexplained phenomena that local environmentalists fear could be harmful and caused by industrial contamination. 2座位於阿根廷帕塔哥尼亞一處偏遠海岸地區的湖泊，變成螢光粉紅色，由於出現此現象的原因尚不明，當地環保人士擔心是工業污染所致，可能有害環境。 Local activist Pablo Lada told Reuters in an interview that the pink color could potentially be the result of a dye typically used to give prawns raised nearby their typically rose-colored hue. 當地環保運動者帕布羅．拉達受訪時向「路透」說，這個粉紅色可能是附近養殖明蝦常用來讓蝦子呈現粉紅色調的染料所致。 "I think that the pink lagoon uncovered a ...lack of treatment of this waste that has become a big problem," Lada said. 「我想，這個粉紅色湖揭露了…這種未經處理廢水已成為一大問題」，拉達說。 Local and regional environmental officials are investigating the cause and potential damage to the lakes but have yet to arrive at any conclusions. 當地和地區環境官員正在調查原因，以及對湖泊的潛在破壞，但尚未有結論。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1563482 ; https://news.ltn.com.tw/news/world/paper/1470155

歡迎留言告訴我們你對這一集的想法： https://open.firstory.me/user/cl81kivnk00dn01wffhwxdg2s/comments 每日英語跟讀 Ep.K512: About Nature - Butterfly ‘tails’ might be part of an escape tactic Tail-like extensions on some butterfly wings may be more than just stylish. 有些蝴蝶翅膀末端像尾巴的延長部分可能不只是時髦。 These break-away parts may help them survive attacks by hungry predators, new data suggest. 新的資料指出，這些斷裂部分可以幫助牠們在遭到飢餓掠食者攻擊時存活下來。 Birds are known to attack eyespots or head-shaped patterns on butterfly wings. 目前已知鳥類會攻擊蝴蝶翅膀上的眼狀斑點或是頭形圖樣。 Because the tails tear off easily, attacked butterflies often can escape and fly away. 因為翅膀尾端容易脫落，被攻擊的蝴蝶通常能夠逃跑飛走。 Those tails distract birds away from the prey’s most vulnerable body parts. 那些尾巴可以分散鳥類對獵物最脆弱身體部位的注意力。 These eye-catching “tails” may have evolved as a decoy to keep hungry birds from grabbing a butterfly’s head or abdomen, scientists say. 科學家表示，這些吸引目光的尾巴可能已經逐步演化成誘餌，防止飢餓的鳥類抓住蝴蝶的頭部或腹部。 The tails of some moths can interfere with the echolocation tactics of hungry bats. 部分飛蛾的尾巴可以干擾飢餓蝙蝠的回聲定位戰術。 Next Article Escaped king cobra crawls back to Swedish Terrarium 逃脫的眼鏡王蛇爬回瑞典飼養箱 A venomous 2.2-meter (7 foot) king cobra that escaped from its home in a Swedish zoo has returned back home by itself, bringing a happy ending to over a week-long disappearance saga. 一條2.2公尺（7英尺）長、從瑞典動物園逃離的有毒眼鏡王蛇，已自行返家，為長達一週的失踪傳奇劃下圓滿句號。 “Houdini, as we named him, has crawled back into his terrarium,” CEO Jonas Wahlstrom of the Skansen Aquarium told the Swedish public broadcaster SVT on Sunday. 週日，斯坎森水族館的執行長喬納斯‧瓦爾斯壯告訴瑞典公共電視台（SVT）：「我們口中的『胡迪尼』（知名逃脫大師）已經爬回牠的飼養箱。」 The deadly snake, whose official name is Sir Vass, escaped on Oct. 22 via a light fixture in the ceiling of its glass enclosure at the aquarium. 這條致命的蛇正式名稱為「瓦斯爵士」，於10月22日經由水族館玻璃外殼天花板上的燈具逃脫。 As a result of an intensive search with X-ray machines, “Houdini” was located earlier this week in a confined space near the terrarium in the insulation between two walls. 園方利用X光機進行密集搜索，本週稍早找出「胡迪尼」的位置，牠身處靠近飼養箱、位於兩堵牆之間絕緣層中的一處密閉空間。 Holes were drilled into the walls where the snake was hiding but the cobra disappeared from the view of the X-ray cameras in the early Sunday. It turned out the snake had given up its freedom ride and crawled back to its terrarium. 蛇藏身的牆壁上被鑽了幾個洞，但這條眼鏡蛇週日稍早從X光攝影機的視野中消失了。原來這條蛇放棄自由行，爬回牠的飼養箱。Source article: https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1561560 ; https://features.ltn.com.tw/english/article/paper/1551362