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Free Wheelin’ 自由行

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课文讲解

繁體中文譯本

Henry is sitting with Amelia during a coffee break:  亨利和阿美利坐在一起喝杯咖啡休息：

A: How was your business trip to the States last week?

上周你去美国出差情况如何？

H: No problems. One interesting thing: I was watching TV in my hotel room, and I saw this amazing machine presented on a talk show.

一切顺利，不过有个东西很有趣：我在旅馆看电视时，看到电视脱口秀节目正在介绍一台很新奇的机器

A: What’s so amazing about it? Will it do my shopping for me?

什么新奇机器？可以帮我买东西吗？

H: No, but it will take you to your shopping. It’s called the Segway Human Transporter. It is a small, battery-powered platform that uses computer-connected gyroscopes to be self-balancing when someone steps on it.

不是，但是它可以带妳去买东西。它叫做赛格威个人运输器，是一台很轻巧、靠电池作为动力的电动滑板车，内部使用连接计算机的陀螺仪，人站在上面时，会自动保持平衡。

A: Yeah, read about it once. It’s supposed to move people around in city areas without the size and mess of cars?

我也看过相关报导。它可以当做人们在城市里的交通载具，而又比汽车轻盈便捷。

H: Right, it has a maximum speed about 27 km/h. That’s faster than the average speed of a taxi in many major cities, which is only about 13 km/h.

对，它的时速最快可达27公里，许多大城市的出租车平均时速也才13公里而已，它还快得多。

A: Hmm …. I sense the potential for serious accidents. Given the American fondness for litigation, have people considered the consequences of these little platforms zipping around sidewalks?

嗯…我同时想到它的潜在危险。美国人最喜欢打官司了，可有人想过这些滑板车在人行道上来去穿梭，有可能产生问题吗？

H: Segway’s inventor, Dean Kamen, said that if a Segway hits you, it’s like being hit by another pedestrian. Anyways, apparently, a yearlong safety study is being conducted in Florida.

赛格威的发明人迪思．卡门曾说，被赛格威撞到不严重，就像被另一位行人撞到而已。总之，相关人员因而在佛罗里达执行为期一年的安全研究。

A: Well, my bicycle still works for me. See you at lunchtime.

那我用脚踏车就够了，午餐时再见。

Vocabulary

单词发音

gyroscope [ˋdʒaɪrə͵skop] n. 陀螺仪﹐ 回转仪

fondness [ˋfɑndnɪs] n. 喜爱；钟爱

litigation [ˋlɪtəˋgeʃən] n. 诉讼，争讼

zip [zɪp] v. 有力而迅速地行动（或移动）

pedestrian [pəˋdɛstrɪən] n. 步行者，行人

yearlong [ˋjɪr͵lɔŋ] adj. 经过一年的；整整一年的

Sentence of the Day

They will be available in the not too distant future.

那些产品不日之内即可问世。

课文讲解

Henry is eating lunch when Amelia walks in:  亨利正在吃午餐时，阿美利走进来：

A: I did some Internet research on alternative transportation. That Segway is interesting, but I think we’ve already got enough traffic congestion here in Taipei, let alone on the sidewalks.

我上网查了一下代替性交通工具的数据，那个赛格威是很有趣的工具没错，不过我认为台北的交通已经够拥挤了，更别提人行道。

H: You’re not alone. Some cities in the U.S., like Atlanta, have tried the Segway with police officers and postal workers, while others, like Boston, are more dubious.

别人也有类似想法。美国有些城市譬如亚特兰大，已经由警方和邮局员工在试用赛格威，另外其他城市譬如波士顿，则较为半信半疑。

A: Even if the verdict isn’t out yet on the Segway, Dean Kamen has some interesting ideas for powering scooters. Have you heard that his company may be releasing the first scooter powered by Stirling engine?

即使赛格威的论断还未定，迪思．卡门对摩托车的动力已经有一些很新鲜的想法。你听过他公司要推出第一辆以史特灵引擎驱动的摩托车吗？

H: Stirling engines? Those engines operate on heat, rather than air pressure or hydraulics, right?

史特灵引擎？是那种用热传动，而不是用气压或水力传动的，是吧？

A: Uh huh. They were designed in 1816, but no one has been able to make them work. Not yet. They are emission-free! If this scooter works, it could revolutionize the energy and transportation industries.

是的，这些引擎在1816年就被设计出来了，不过没有人能有效地利用它们，至少到目前还没有。它们不会排放废气！倘若这种摩托车能用，对能源工业和交通运输业可能会发生革命性的影响。

H: That is significant for Taiwan also. The government intends to gradually replace all gasoline scooters with electric ones. Already, some models developed in Taiwan are commercially available.

对台湾也是意义重大，因为政府有意渐渐地以电动摩托车取代全部的用油摩托车，已经有台湾自行研发的几种车款上市了。

A: I’ll stick with my bicycle, but the boss might be interested in these technologies.

我还是坚持骑我的脚踏车，不过老板可能会对这种科技有兴趣。

H: Lunchtime business proposal, eh? Eat locally, buy globally.

午餐会报上提建议案？嘿，吃只准吃本土，买却要买国际的。

－by Iain Ferguson

Vocabulary

单词发音

congestion [kənˋdʒɛstʃən] n. 堵塞，拥挤

dubious [ˋdjubɪəs] adj.（对事物）半信半疑的，犹豫不决的

verdict [ˋvɝdɪkt] n.【律】（陪审团的）裁决，裁定

hydraulics [haɪˋdrɔlɪks] n. 水力学

emission [ɪˋmɪʃən] n.〔机器或工厂的〕排气; 排放物

Sentence of the Day

The new designs are in train.

新造型已经备妥，准备上市。

in train【文】准备妥当