Week9 里約奧運

China’s swimmer Sun Yang out of 1,500m final

China’s world record holder and Olympic 1,500 metres freestyle champion Sun Yang blamed fever and flu medication for his failure to qualify for the Rio final.

Sun, who has already won a 200 metres freestyle gold and 400 metres silver and also become embroiled in a “drugs cheat” controversy, was 16th fastest overall in Friday’s heats with the top eight going through to Saturday’s final.

Italian Gregorio Paltrinieri, the world champion, was fastest in 14 minutes 44.51 seconds.

Sun, who set his record of 14:31.02 at the London 2012 Olympics, laboured through the heat and touched the wall in 15:01.97 — more than 30 seconds off his best.

“I feel better today but the past two days were worse,” he told reporters, saying he had resorted to flu medication. “I was afraid of catching a fever and affecting my other races so I had no choice but to increase the dosage.

“I didn’t expect my body’s condition and skill to deteriorate so quickly.”

Sun added that his muscles had been tired after the 800 metres race and the late nights of the Rio swimming programme had also taken a toll.

“I’ve been training in the U.S. for a while, and now I’ve suddenly come to Brazil, this has knocked my body clock and I find myself staring at the ceiling…awake at 3 or 4 a.m.,” added the swimmer.

The swimmer, the first Chinese to win gold in the pool, also missed the 1,500 metres final at last year’s world championships in Russia when he made a shock withdrawal.

China’s most successful male swimmer said at the time that he had felt uncomfortable while warming up.

His presence in Rio was already controversial, with the run-up to the Olympics overshadowed by a Russian doping scandal, since it emerged in 2014 that he had secretly served a three-month ban after testing positive for a banned stimulant.

China opted for a lenient punishment because Sun had been given medication, which had only just been added to the banned list, to treat a heart issue.

Australian swimmer Mack Horton, who qualified fourth fastest for the 1,500 metres final, stirred up a social media storm when he branded Sun a “drug cheat” before their 400 metres final on Saturday.

Horton went on to win that gold, with Chinese web-users bombarding his social media accounts and state media calling Australia “uncivilised” and “Britain’s offshore prison”.

Sun’s failure came after Chinese female swimmer Chen Xinyi was a no-show in the 50 metres freestyle heats.

Chinese state media, citing the country’s swimming association (CSA), said Chen had tested positive for a banned substance on Aug. 7.

網址：https://www.google.com.tw/amp/indianexpress.com/sports/rio-2016-olympics/chinas-sun-yang-out-of-1500m-final-swimming-2971776/lite/?client=ms-android-oppo

who:Sun Yang
what: He was blamed fever and flu medication
when:at the London 2012 Olympics

key words:
qualify有資格
embroiled始捲入
controversy爭議
dosage劑量
condition狀況
deteriorate惡化
presence出席
overshadowed黯然失色的
emerged出現
stimulant興奮劑
opted選擇
lenient寬容的
stir up煽動
branded烙印
bombarding轟炸

week8 pokemon go

Psychology Experts Explain Why ‘Pokemon Go’ Is So Addictive

I’ve spent my past few days staring at a screen, scouting the nearby terrain for imaginary creatures known as Pokémon.

I could have written that same sentence 18 years ago, when I was eight years old and addicted to playing Pokémon Blue on my Game Boy Color. But here I am as a 26-year-old in 2016, just as enchanted by these little critters as I was back in 1998. In the Pokémon universe, each fictional creature has its own special powers that correspond to its “type.” An aquatic Pokémon like the turtle-themed Squirtle, for example, attacks its enemies with blasts of water. A grass Pokémon such as Bulbasaur whips its enemies with vines. Each game encourages players to catch as many different varieties as possible and pit them in battles against one another to advance.

I’m far from the only adult hooked on Pokémon Go, the first official game in the Pokémon franchise made specifically for smartphones. The evidence is easily seen — unlike other Pokémon games, Go requires players to explore the real world around them in order to collect Pokémon. I could barely walk around for 10 minutes this weekend without hearing a fellow player excitedly yelp about a nearby Pikachu or Bulbasaur. Less than a week after it was launched in the U.S., Go sits atop the iPhone and Android app store popularity charts.

What’s creating all this excitement? In part, the fans that embraced Pokémon during their childhood in the 1990s are once again indulging in their old obsession. Nostalgia, experts say, can be a powerful force luring users to a new but familiar experience.

“If nostalgia is in play, and it evokes this positive emotion . . . our brain can substitute the question, ‘Does this make me happy’ for ‘Is this a good game?'” says Dr. Jamie Madigan, author of the book Getting Gamers: The Psychology of Video Games and Their Impact on People Who Play Them.

Indeed, nostalgia commands a powerful influence throughout pop culture, as evidenced by the sequels and reboots that seem unavoidable at movie theaters this summer. That’s because it is often associated with positive feelings and can help people feel more connected to others. At root, nostalgia is a kind of acute homesickness. The word comes from the Greeknostos, a return home, and algos, or pain.

“Nostalgia is just as much about the future as it is the past,” says Dr. Clay Routledge, a professor of psychology at North Dakota State University who has been studying the psychological effects of nostalgia for 10 years. “It wouldn’t surprise me at all if this Pokémon Go phenomenon was making people make new friends because they have these shared memories.” (A recent story in The Wall Street Journal suggests that is indeed the case.)

To be sure, nostalgia is not the sole cause of Pokémon Go’s overnight success. Pokémon fans have long clamored for a way to enjoy the franchise on smartphones. This represents their first chance to do so without using unofficial emulation software. “Putting [Pokémon] on the accessibility of a smartphone means the total available markets are monster numbers,” says P.J. McNealy, chief executive of consumer research firm Digital World Research. Also driving downloads is the game’s clever use of smartphone components like its GPS chip and camera, which together provide the illusion that wild Pokémon are out there in the real world, waiting to be caught.

That said, Pokémon Go’s clever game mechanics alone can’t explain why the game has become such a runaway hit. Go developer Niantic has a similar but non-Pokémon game, Ingress, that has a dedicated but comparatively small number of players. That’s evidence that Pokémon nostalgia, not gameplay alone, is the driving force behind what looks to be the breakout hit of the summer. Pokémon Go, says Routledge, is “this perfect marriage of nostalgia, bringing something old that people have these memories of from their childhood. And coupling that with technology that allows people to connect and share these experiences in ways they could not in the past.”

網址:http://time.com/4402123/pokemon-go-nostalgia/

who:psychology experts

what:explain why pokemon go is so addictive

key words:

terrain地型

enchant附魔

critter小動物

correspond 對應

aquatic水

blast爆破

franchise特許經營

indulging沉迷

obsession癡迷

luring 誘惑

nostalgia懷舊

evoke喚起

sequel續集
reboot重新啟動
sole唯一
clamored叫囂
emulation仿真
accessibility可接近性
illusion錯覺
dedicated專用
breakout爆發

week7尼斯恐攻

Nice attack: truck driver named as France mourns 84 killed in Bastille Day atrocity – as it happened

Nearly 24 hours after a Bastille Day celebration was transformed into a nightmare, “locals and visitors returned to the Promenade des Anglais to lay   flowers for the dead and to wonder exactly how, and why, the unthinkable had   come to pass,” my colleague Sam Jones reports from the city.

Throughout Friday, impromptu shrines had sprung up along the metal barriers that closed off the promenade. From one hung a tricolor with a black ribbon sewn on to the white central stripe. At another, a picture of Buddha watched over a dozen small candles. Someone had left a cigarette lighter and more nightlights on the ground so others could light candles and offer prayers.

Madame Bourmault, who lives two minutes from the promenade, came to one of the shrines with a bunch of flowers in her hand and tears in her eyes.

“I can’t sleep and I can’t breathe. It’s just horrible,” she said.

“What else can you say?” She had been down by the firework display on Thursday night, and seen a sudden tide of people screaming and running away. “In a fraction of a second, the music stopped and there was a lot of screaming. Everyone was running and no one was helping.”

On Bormault’s mind was a question that many around the world are asking: how had the truck managed to get on to the promenade? “It’s normally closed to traffic,” she said. However, she did not blame the police. “I don’t know what else the police could have done, but I don’t understand how the truck got in.”

She added: “You can’t put a policeman behind everyone - and there area lot of crazy people in this world.”

網址:

https://www.theguardian.com/world/live/2016/jul/14/nice-bastille-day-france-attack-promenade-des-anglais-vehicle

when:24 hours after a Bastille Day celebration

what: celebration was transformed into a nightmare

key words:

atrocity殘暴;殘酷

transform改變

unthinkable難以想像的

impromptu事先無準備的

shrine神殿;聖壇

spring up突然出現;迅速成長

barriers 障礙

promenade散步場所;海濱人行道

tricolor三色旗

a fraction of 一小部分

week6美古關係

Barack Obama: 'Change is going to happen in Cuba'

President Barack Obama is in Cuba for a historic three-day visit to the island and talks with its communist leader.

He is the first sitting US president to visit since the 1959 revolution, which heralded decades of hostility between the two countries.

Mr Obama said change would happen in Cuba and that Cuban President Raul Castro understood that.

The two leaders met to talk about trade and held a joint news conference.

Mr Castro denied that there are political prisoners in Cuba, telling journalists to "give him a list" and then they would be released "tonight".

He also defended Cuba's record on human rights and pointed to problems in the US.

"We defend human rights, in our view civil, political, economic, social and cultural rights are indivisible, inter-dependent and universal," Mr Castro said.

"Actually we find it inconceivable that a government does not defend and ensure the right to healthcare, education, social security, food provision and development."

Mr Obama said the trade embargo would be fully lifted in Cuba, but he could not say exactly when.

"The reason is what we did for 50 years did not serve our interests or the interests of the Cuban people," he said.

網址:http://www.bbc.com/news/world-latin-america-35856126

who:President Barack Obama

when: since the 1959 revolution

what:The two leaders met to talk about trade and held a joint news conference.

key words:

historic歷史上著名的

revolution革命

herald宣布

hostility敵意

joint聯合的

defend防禦

inconceivable不能想像的

embargo禁運

week5 VR虛擬實境

How construction companies are using virtual reality to plan, build and manage complicated projects

Virtual reality could make it easier to build complex utility projects, like a wastewater treatment plant, and it could also help workers train on heavy equipment when the facility is complete. Originally, Bouianov’s plan was to use virtual reality for training purposes at hospitals and nuclear facilities before eventually deciding to focus on construction documentation. Mortenson is looking at developing VR training programs for projects it is working on, like the West Campus Utility Plant for the University of Washington, where employees will operate chillers, cooling towers, generators and other heavy machinery.

Overall, virtual reality has great potential for the construction industry, both for third party companies building virtual environments, and contractors making programs in house. Bouianov has always been interested in construction, and he saw documenting projects as a costly and time-consuming part of the process that could be simplified by technology. But he isn’t the only one, and now many contractors are facing the dilemma of which apps, headsets and ideas fit best for their projects.

“There are many potential solutions to chose from,” Bouianov said. “So going from almost no technology to a lot of technology, the challenge construction companies are facing is choice, making an informed choice.”

網址:http://www.geekwire.com/2016/construction-companies-turn-to-virtual-reality-to-plan-build-and-manage-complicated-projects/

who:virtual reality

what:make it easier to build complex utility projects

how:virtual reality has great potential for the construction industry

key words:

utility 效用

equipment設備

nuclear核能的

documentation文件

chiller冷水機組

cooling towers冷卻塔

generator發電機

potential潛力

contractor承包商

costly昂貴的

simplified簡化的

dilemma困境

week4 Leonardo Dicaprio

Leonardo DiCaprio Finally Wins An Oscar For Best Actor

With his fifth nomination, Leonardo DiCaprio has finally earned an Oscar for his role in The Revenant.

The actor beat out competition from Bryan Cranston (Trumbo), Eddie Redmayne (The Danish Girl), Matt Damon (The Martian) and Michael Fassbender (Steve Jobs).

“The Revenant was the product of the tireless efforts of an unbelievable cast and crew,” said DiCaprio, in perhaps the most controlled speech of the night. DiCaprio addressed co-star Tom Hardy, who was nominated in the Best Supporting Actor category, while also thanking the film’s New Regency financier Arnon Milchan.

In 2015, DiCaprio banked $29 million to land on FORBES’ Celebrity 100 list of the World’s Highest-Paid Entertainers. Per last year’s rankings, he is the 13th Highest-Paid Actor in the world and has earned an estimated $440 million-plus in his career so far.

A committed environmentalist who has pledged $30 million in the last year to conservation efforts, DiCaprio devoted a chunk of his speech to discussing climate change.

“The Revenant was about man’s relationship with the natural world,” said DiCaprio, who stated that 2015 was the hottest year in reported history.  ”Climate change is real, it’s happening right now. It’s the most urgent threat facing our entire species and we need to work collectively together and stop procrastinating,” DiCaprio concluded.

Finished DiCaprio: “Let’s not take this planet for granted–I do not take tonight for granted.”

網址:http://www.forbes.com/sites/natalierobehmed/2016/02/28/leonardo-dicaprio-finally-wins-an-oscar-for-best-actor/#6454e5306901

who:Leonardo DiCaprio
what:He wins an Oscar for best actor

key words:
nomination提名
beat 打敗
tireless孜孜不倦的
cast演員陣容
co-star合演
financier投資者
pledge保證
collectively 集體地
procrastinating拖延

敘利亞難民

Alan Kurdi’s Story: Behind The Most Heartbreaking Photo of 2015

Alan Kurdi was one of a million. In the summer of 2015, the three-year-old Syrian boy of Kurdish origins and his family fled the war engulfing their country, hoping to join relatives in the safety of Canada. They were part of a historic flow of refugees from the Middle East to Europe this year, and they followed the dangerous route taken by so many others.

In the early hours of Sept. 2, the family crowded onto a small inflatable boat on the beach of Bodrum, Turkey. A few minutes into the journey to Greece, the dinghy capsized. Alan, his older brother Ghalib and his mother Rihanna all drowned, joining the more than 3,600 other refugees who died in the eastern Mediterranean this year.

網址:http://time.com/4162306/alan-kurdi-syria-drowned-boy-refugee-crisis/

who:Alan Kurdi 

when:In the summer of 2015

what:Alan, his older brother Ghalib and his mother Rihanna all drowned, joining the more than 3,600 other refugees who died in the eastern Mediterranean

why: the dinghy capsized

key words:

engulf 包圍;吞沒

refugee難民

inflatable可充氣的

dinghy小帆船

capsize翻覆

drowned溺死的