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A Battle in Wiki World 维基百科词条大战

课文朗读

课文讲解

繁體中文譯本

A battle is brewing within the pages of the world’s largest online encyclopedia, Wikipedia. Two camps with different ideals are locked in a conflict over what content should be included on the site. On one side are the “inclusionists,” who believe anything and everything under the sun should be included in Wikipedia. Opposing them are the “deletionists,” who believe that Wikipedia needs to maintain a certain level of quality and relevance, and thus irrelevant articles should be excluded.

全球最大在线百科全书维基百科的网页之间，有一场战争正在酝酿，理念不同的两阵营正为网站应收录的内容而僵持不下。其中一方保留派，他们认为，太阳底下的万事万物都应收录于维基百科。持反对立场的删除派则认为，维基百科必须维持一定程度的质量和适切性，因此无关紧要的文章应予以排除。

The inclusionists argue that, unlike traditional encyclopedias, Wikipedia has no reason to worry about space limits, as it is online. However, the deletionists believe that trivial entries compromise the seriousness of the project. So how can it be determined what is trivial, and what is relevant?

保留派认为，维基百科是在线百科，因此不必像传统百科全书一样，担心空间限制，但删除派则认为，太琐碎的词条有损其严肃性。那么到底该如何判断哪些词条是琐碎的、哪些是适当的呢？

Now, in order to solve this problem, Wikipedia has created rules to decide what should be included. For example, something that has been mentioned in a reputable international journal has a better chance of being accepted than something that was only mentioned in a local newspaper. Likewise, something that can generate 100,000 hits on a Google search would be more likely to win a spot than something that generates 100.

现在为了解决此一问题，维基百科已建立规则来决定收录内容。例如，曾在知名国际期刊中出现的题材，比起仅在地方报纸被提及的事件，更有机会被采纳。同理，可于Google搜索引擎上引起十万次点阅的资料，也会比仅引起百次点阅量的资料，更有机会赢得一席之地。

Vocabulary

单词发音

oppose [əˋpoz] v. 反对

relevance [ˋrɛləvəns] n. 关联

trivial [ˋtrɪvɪəl] adj. 琐细的；不重要的

reputable [ˋrɛpjətəb!] adj. 声誉好的

generate [ˋdʒɛnə͵ret] v. 产生

More Information

单词发音

encyclopedia [ɪnˌsaɪkləˈpidiə] n. 百科全书

lock [lɑk] v. 卡住；塞住

exclude [ɪkˋsklud] v. 把…排除在外

entry [ˋɛntrɪ] n. 词条

compromise [ˋkɑmprə͵maɪz] v. 连累，危及

seriousness [ˋsɪrɪəsnɪs] n. 严肃性

hit [hɪt] n.（网站的）点击

spot [spɑt] n. 职位

课文朗读

课文讲解

A panel made of about 1,000 of Wikipedia’s most active contributors has been created to enforce the rules. Any panel member can nominate a new or pre-existing article for deletion and other panel members will decide the article’s fate.

在维基百科，约一千名最活跃的撰稿人已组成审查团来执行规定，任何审查团成员皆可提名删除全新或既存的文章，然后由其他成员决定该文章的命运。

If you submit something to Wikipedia and it is put up for deletion, don’t feel bad. Even the site’s founder, Jimmy Wales, has had an entry held up for inspection. After he created a short entry about a South African restaurant where he had enjoyed a meal, the entry was nominated for deletion because the restaurant was not considered notable enough. After a long debate, the article was kept.

如果你在维基百科提交文章，却被指名删除，别难过。即使是该网站创办人吉米．韦尔斯的词条，也曾被提出来检讨。他在南非某间餐厅享用一顿美食后，便为该餐厅撰写一篇简短的词条内容，但该文却被提名删除，因为审查团认为，那间餐馆不够有名。经过漫长辩论该词条才得以保留。

Debates such as this can last for weeks and often become quite hostile. Many feel that Wikipedia is no longer a welcoming place for members, as deletionists will get rid of any entry that does not meet their standards. Recent statistics have shown that Wikipedia’s member activity is dropping and many members are leaving the site altogether. And yet, Wikipedia remains extremely popular with the public, trusted by millions worldwide as a convenient source of information. The direction they take could set the standard for online encyclopedias of the future.

这类辩论可能持续几周，且往往演变得颇具敌意。许多人认为，对会员而言，维基百科已不再是个友善的地方了，因为删除派会除去任何未达标准的词条。近期的统计数字显示，维基百科的会员活动正在减少，许多会员甚至集体离开该网站。但维基百科仍非常受大众欢迎，全球有数以百万计的人相信，它是便利的信息来源。而维基百科实行的方向，可能成为未来在线百科全书的标准。

−by Joe Henley

Vocabulary

单词发音

enforce [ɪnˋfors] v. 实施，执行

nominate [ˋnɑmə͵net] v. 指定; 提名

inspection [ɪnˋspɛkʃən] n. 检查

hostile [ˋhɑst!] adj. 怀敌意的

statistics [stəˋtɪstɪks] n. 统计，统计资料

More Information

单词发音

panel [ˋpæn!] n. 专门小组；评判小组

contributor [kənˋtrɪbjʊtɚ] n. 贡献者；投稿人

put up 提出 to nominate

hold up 举作为范例; 延误 to obstruct or delay

notable [ˋnotəb!] adj. 著名的，显要的

get rid of  除掉, 扔掉, 消灭  terminate, end, or take out

Reading Questions

1.  If you were an “inclusionist,” what would you say about an unimportant entry on Wikipedia?

A.  It should be deleted because it is of little value.

B.  It makes the overall quality of Wikipedia worse.     

C.  It doesn’t matter whether it’s part of Wikipedia or not.

D.  This type of entry is just as acceptable as any other.

2.   Based on the rules of Wikipedia, which is the most likely to be deleted?

A.  Something that can be easily found with an Internet search engine.

B.  Something that is written about in a popular science magazine.

C.  Something that has been covered in a school magazine.

D.  Something that has generated millions of dollars in profits over the past year.

3.   Which of the following statement is NOT true?

A.  An entry for a restaurant by the site’s founder Jimmy Wales was once deleted.

B.  The panel members are free to suggest any article they feel should be deleted.

C.  Fewer members are adding new entries to Wikipedia than before.

D.  Deletionists are causing many members to feel unwelcome.

4.   What is the main purpose of the article?

A.  To explain the deletionists’ points of view regarding Wikipedia and its entries.

B.  To show why Wikipedia is having difficulty remaining up-to-date.

C.  To describe the conflict taking place within Wikipedia and its effects.

D.  To clarify the new rules for how to post an entry on Wikipedia.

Answer