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Humble Masterpieces 小创意，大发明：《日常设计经典100》

 

课文朗读

 

课文讲解

 

繁體中文譯本

 

Late for school once again. I quickly throw on a fresh pair of soft contact lenses while copying my latest computer assignment to CD. As I’m running out the door, A Post-it note I left reminds me not to forget my lunch in the fridge. From eyewear to electronics to everyday reminders, these unsung heroes are the subjects of design admirer Paola Antonelli’s new book, Humble Masterpieces. Here we see just how amazing these inventions truly are!

上课又要迟到了，我一边将最新的计算机作业拷到光盘上，一边迅速戴上一副新的软式隐形眼镜。出门时，一张之前贴的便利贴提醒我别忘了冰箱里的午餐。从眼镜、电子产品、到日常生活的备忘录，这些无名英雄正是设计达人葆拉．安东列尼新书《日常设计经典100》中的主角。让我们来瞧瞧这些发明有多令人惊奇！

 

The SwissChamp Knife  瑞士刀

 

Camping is a great way to get back to basics, as long as you have the right tools. You might need a sharp knife to cut the rope, a can opener to open up dinner, and a pair of tweezers to pull out any firewood splinters. But, rather than packing up all this equipment, why not just put it in your pocket? That’s exactly what prompted designer Karl Elsener to create the SwissChamp knife. He wanted to provide Swiss army soldiers with a useful tool in the field. Since its invention, the SwissChamp knife has transformed into over 100 different variations of the original.

只要你有合适的工具，露营便是回归原始绝佳方式。你也许会需要一把利刃来切断绳索，一个开罐器来打开晚餐，和一把镊子来拔出小木刺。与其把这些工具都打包起来，何不将它们装到口袋里？这正是驱使设计师卡尔．艾森纳发明瑞士刀的动机。他希望能提供实用的工具给战场上的瑞士军人。自发明以来，瑞士刀已有超过一百种不同的款式。

 

The Filofax Ring-Bound Organizer  活页万用手册

 

Where can you find a calendar, address book, notepad and other helpful information in one package? The ring-bound organizer, that’s where. This forerunner of today’s PDA was created by the English company Norman & Hill and uses a simple ring clamp design to hold or remove pre-punched cards. Today, this effective design comes in a variety of different colors and styles. By adding small personal touches, you can transform this functional object into a true artistic expression.

哪里能找到集日历、住址簿、记事本、及其他有用信息于一身的东西？当然就是活页万用手册啰！这个PDA的前身是由英国Normal & Hill公司所创发，利用简单的环扣设计来存放或移除已打孔的纸片。如今这项便利的设计有不同的颜色及款式，你可以添加个人巧思，让这个生活好帮手变身成不折不扣的艺术品。

 

The Post-it Note  便利贴

 

Anyone who has used them can tell you just how handy the sticky notes, or Post-its are. Interestingly enough, the Post-it note was created by accident. While 3M scientists were experimenting with strong adhesives, they accidentally created a weak glue and ignored it. One day, a young 3M employee named Art Fry, frustrated with traditional bookmarks, applied this glue to a piece of yellow paper. Thus, the Post-it Note was born. The idea of using it as an instant memo caught on to create a paper hyperlink unlike any other.

任何用过便条纸的人都会告诉你这种黏黏的纸片有多好用。有趣的是，便利贴的发明纯属意外。当3M的科学家在试验强力黏着剂时，意外创造了一种黏性不强的胶水后略而不用。有一天，一名3M的年轻职员亚特．福莱因为觉得传统书签不好用，便将这种胶水涂在一张黄色纸片上，便利贴就应运而生。这种即贴备忘录的使用概念后来蔚为风潮，产生前所未见的便利贴文化。

 

Vocabulary

单词发音

 

 

throw on 匆匆穿上

unsung hero 无名英雄 a person who makes a substantive yet unrecognized contribution; a person whose bravery is unknown or unacknowledged

get back to basics 回归基本/原始

prompt [prɑmpt] v. 促使；激励

variation [͵vɛrɪˋeʃən] n. 变化

forerunner [ˋfor͵rʌnɚ] n. 前驱

touch [tʌtʃ] n. 风格；特点

frustrated [ˋfrʌstretɪd] adj. 灰心丧气的﹐泄气的﹐沮丧的[+with/at]

catch on 流行

hyperlink [ˋhaɪpɚ͵lɪŋk] n. 超链接

 

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单词发音

 

 

fridge [frɪdʒ] n.【英】【口】电冰箱

eyewear [ˈaɪwɛr] n. 眼镜

admirer [ədˋmaɪrɚ] n. 钦佩者；欣赏者

tweezers [ˋtwizɚz] n. 镊子；拔毛钳；小钳子

firewood [ˋfaɪr͵wʊd] n. 木柴；柴火

splinter [ˋsplɪntɚ] n.〔木头﹑玻璃或金属的〕碎片﹐尖片

Filofax [͵fɪləˋfæks] n. 备忘记事本

notepad [ˋnotpæd] n. 笔记本，记事手册

clamp [klæmp] n. 螺丝钳，铁箍

punch [pʌntʃ] v.（用打孔器）在……上打孔

handy [ˋhændɪ] adj. 便利的；便于使用的

note [not] n. 便条

adhesive [ədˋhisɪv] n. 胶黏剂

glue [glu] n. 胶，胶水；黏着剂

bookmark [ˋbʊk͵mɑrk] n. 书签

memo [ˋmɛmo] n. 便笺

 

 

 

课文讲解

 

The Slide-on Paperclip  回形针

 

The smallest of ideas are often the best, as is the case with the paperclip. Before its creation, people punched holes in paper, and then tied the papers together with ribbon. This had been the standard practice since the 13^th century! Finally, a Norwegian patent clerk developed a triangular clip from elastic steel wire. Today, the sublime double-oval shape of the modern paperclip is not only strong, but convenient to use. Each clip is made from a single piece of steel, giving it just the right amount of tension to keep your paper in place.

最微不足道的点子常是最棒的，回形针便是一例。在回形针发明之前，人们都是将纸张打孔，再用绳子将纸绑在一起，这种装订模式可是十三世纪就有了！后来，挪威一名专利办事员将具弹性的钢丝做成三角形的夹子。如今，这出色的双椭圆形现代回形针既坚固又好用。每一枚回形针皆由一根钢丝形成，使其有适度的张力夹住、固定文件。

 

Band-Aid  OK绷

 

While preparing dinner for her family, a woman cut her finger – again. Her husband, American businessman Earle Dickson, a cotton buyer for Johnson & Johnson, tried to think of a way to help her. He came up with a great idea: using cotton gauze placed at intervals along an adhesive strip. He used crinoline to keep the bandages sterile. After he showed his invention to his boss, it wasn’t long before Band-Aid became the benchmark for the bandages found in almost every medicine chest.

一名妇人为家人做晚饭时「又」切到手！她的先生埃尔．迪克森是位替娇生公司采购棉花的美国商人。他试着找出方法帮助他太太而想出了一个绝妙点子：将棉纱置于黏性绷带中央，并用硬衬布让绷带保持无菌状态。埃尔．迪克森将自己的发明拿给老板看，不久，OK绷便成为几乎所有药箱里的标准配备。

 

Q-Tips  棉花棒

 

When you take a shower, do you clean out your ears? If you do, chances are you use Q-tip brand cotton swabs. They were the brainchild of Polish inventor Leo Gerstenzang, who first came up with the idea after observing his wife applying wads of cotton to toothpicks. Gerstenzang perfected her design making safety and quality his first concern. He used cotton balls attached to the ends of short, cardboard sticks. In fact, the “Q” in Q-Tips is short for “quality.”

你淋浴时会掏耳朵吗？如果会，十之八九你用的是Q-tip牌棉花棒。这是波兰发明李奥．葛腾桑格的独创点子。他看到太太将牙签套上棉花，便初步提出了这样的构想。后来他又加以改良，将棉花球黏在短的厚纸棒末端以确保安全与质量。事实上，Q-tip的Q是英文quality（质量）的缩写。

 

LEGO Building Blocks  乐高积木

 

While growing up, children are blessed with powerful imaginations. They love to create, building things they dream about. Thanks to LEGO, their fantasies can take on new shapes. LEGO is Danish for “play well” and Latin for “I learn,” which were the ideas that motivated Danish toymaker Ole Kirk Christiansen to create his vision. These brightly-colored interlocking plastic blocks allow kids to be creative while having fun.

成长中的儿童有得天独厚的超强想象力，他们喜欢创作，建造出自己梦想的事物。多亏乐高，他们的幻想有了新风貌。乐高(LEGO)是丹麦文「充分玩乐」与拉丁文「我学习」之意，两者的精神正是丹麦玩具制造商克里斯田森发明乐高的动机。这些颜色鲜艳、可串联的塑料积木让小朋友能在玩乐中发挥创意。

 

Vocabulary

单词发音

 

 

as is the case with 如同…的情况

patent [ˋpætnt] n. 专利；专利权

elastic [ɪˋlæstɪk] adj. 有弹性的

keep …. in place  将..固定

interval [ˋɪntɚv!] n. 间离

benchmark [ˋbɛntʃ͵mɑrk] n. 水平点；基准

brainchild [ˋbren͵tʃaɪld] n.（某人的）创作，独创的观念

wad [wɑd] n.（棉花、绉纸等的）（一）团

attach to  附着于

take on 具有; 呈现  to display violent or passionate emotion

 

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单词发音

 

 

paperclip [`pepɚˏklɪp] n. 纸夹; 回形针

Norwegian [nɔrˋwidʒən] adj. 挪威(人)的

sublime [səˋblaɪm] adj. 超群的，出众的

gauze [gɔz] n.（医用）纱布

crinoline [ˋkrɪnə͵lin] n. 硬衬布

bandage [ˋbændɪdʒ] n. 绷带

sterile [ˋstɛrəl] adj. 消过毒的，无菌的

chest [tʃɛst] n. 箱子，盒子

swab [swɑb] n.〔医生或护士用以清洁伤口等的〕拭子﹐药棉棒

toothpick [ˋtuθ͵pɪk] n. 牙签

concern [kənˋsɝn] n. 关心的事

cardboard [ˋkɑrd͵bord] n. 硬纸板

bless [blɛs] v. 使有幸得到[H][（+with）]

fantasy [ˋfæntəsɪ] n. 想象; 空想的产物；幻想作品

interlocking [͵ɪntɚˋlɑkɪŋ] adj. 联锁的; 连结的

 

 

 

课文讲解

 

Rubik’s Cube Puzzle  魔术方块

 

Who would have ever thought that a tool originally used to study geometry and 3-dimensional forms would start a craze? The Rubik’s Cube, designed by Hungarian professor Erno Rubik, saw people becoming obsessed with lining up the colors. There is only one correct solution out of a possible 43 quintillion possibilities, and no one has solved the puzzle in fewer than 52 moves!

谁会想到原本用来研究几何学与立体造型的工具会引发一股风潮？匈牙利教授艾诺．鲁毕克设计的魔术方块令人沉迷于色块排列中。在43×10¹⁸种可能变化中，只有一种是对的，而目前尚无人能转动少于52次将魔术方块转回原状。

 

Stay-on Tab  留置式易拉罐拉环

 

Nothing is worse than walking along a beach and having something sharp cut your foot. Environmental concerns prompted American Daniel Cudzik to invent the non-removable pull-tab, or stay-on tab found on the soft drink containers. Before its creation, tabs were removable and often discarded on sidewalks, streets and beaches. Thanks to his creation, no one has to think about where to throw away that pesky tab.

在沙滩上被尖锐东西割伤是最煞风景的事了。环保意识促使美国人丹尼尔．寇德席克发明了非移动式拉环，也就是易拉罐饮料上的留置式拉环。这项发明问世前，易拉罐拉环常被丢弃于人行道、街上及海滩上。多亏他的发明，大家不必再伤脑筋拉环要丢到哪儿了。

 

Soft Contact Lenses  软式隐形眼镜

 

What replaces glasses and can change your eye color? Soft contact lenses, of course! Czechoslovakian chemical engineer Otto Wichterle developed water-swelling plastic gels to create a curved design which would fit over the eye. After several years of painful self-tests, he finally created soft contact lenses that allow those that wear glasses a more comfortable and aesthetic solution.

什么东西能取代眼镜，还能改变眼睛的颜色？当然是软式隐形眼镜啰！捷克化学工程师奥图．威特雷研发了水胶，形成可服贴于眼睛表面的圆弧设计。经过数年痛苦的自我测试后，他终于研发出软式隐形眼镜，让戴眼镜者更舒服、美观。

 

Digital Compact Disc  数字光盘片

 

Some use it to store their files while others use it to listen to music. At home, school, or the office, nothing travels like the compact disc. It was invented by American designer James T. Russell, who realized he could store massive amounts of information by using light. His idea was developed by electronic pioneer Philip and Sony. Now, people around the world all appreciate this great invention.

有人用它储存档案，有人则用它听音乐。不管是居家、学校或办公室，没有东西能像光盘这样游走各地。光盘片由美国设计师詹姆斯．罗素发明。他发现能用光来储存大量的信息。电子业先驱飞利浦及新力公司将他的点子发扬光大。如今，世界各地的人们皆能享用这项伟大的发明。

 

−by Ryan Campbell

 

Vocabulary

单词发音

 

 

geometry [dʒɪˋɑmətrɪ] n. 几何学

be obsessed with 着迷于

container [kənˋtenɚ] n. 容器（如箱、盒、罐等）

discard [dɪsˋkɑrd] v. 丢弃

gel [dʒɛl] n. 凝胶

curved [kɝvd] adj. 圆弧形的

aesthetic [ɛsˋθɛtɪk] adj. 美(学)的

 

More Information

单词发音

 

 

craze [krez] n.（一时的）狂热；风尚

3-dimensional [dɪˋmɛnʃən!] adj. 三次元的；立体的

quintillion [kwɪnˋtɪljən] n. 百万的三次方

non-removable 固定的

pull-tab 拉环

tab [tæb] n.（易拉罐的）拉环

pesky [ˋpɛskɪ] adj.【美】【口】麻烦的；讨厌的

Czechoslovakian [͵tʃɛkəsləˋvɑkɪən] adj. 捷克斯拉夫的；捷克斯拉夫人的

water-swelling  吸水膨胀的