| Sports |
| World Cup fever: The economics of soccer |
世足賽狂熱：足球經濟學 |
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| The Spaniards are favorites to become the World Cup champions, according to a recent survey that polled 74 soccer fan economists. Twenty-four respondents said Spain would get rid of their disappointing World Cup reputation this year and win the title for the first time, just a little more than the 23 who expect Brazil to add to their record of five trophies. |
根據最近一項針對七十四位足球迷經濟學家所做的調查顯示，西班牙隊是最被看好能奪冠的球隊。廿四位受訪者表示，西班牙隊將洗刷「世足賽一條蟲」的污名，首次高舉冠軍金盃；逾廿三人則預測五度奪冠的巴西隊將再度贏得冠軍。 |
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| But economists are not known for their powers of foresight in matters of football. For the 2006 World Cup poll, most of them showed as much accuracy in guessing the winner as they did in predicting the global financial crisis. Only eight out of 96 correctly predicted a victorious Italy. |
可是在足球方面，「未卜先知」並不是經濟學家的強項。在二○○六年德國世足賽的調查中，大部分經濟學家預測哪一隊會奪冠和預言全球金融危機是否爆發的精準度差不多。在九十六位受訪者中，只有八人準確預測義大利隊會奪冠。 |
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| In the latest survey, just one economist expected Italy to retain their title in South Africa this year, and Argentina polled a distant third behind Spain and Brazil. |
在最新的一項民調中，只有一位經濟學家預測義大利隊會在今年的南非世足賽衛冕成功，阿根廷隊的看好度則遠遠落後西班牙與巴西隊，屈居第三。 |
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| "I'd go for Spain because they seem to have not just the talent but also the toughness and strength which they missed in the past," said a Citibank economist. "Brazil is a big threat, but will they have the energy to go all the way?" South American champions Brazil remained top of the official FIFA rankings, with European champions Spain in second place. |
一位花旗銀行經濟學家表示：「我會猜西班牙隊，因為他們似乎不光是才華洋溢，還擁有以往所欠缺的意志力與實力。巴西隊是個勁敵，可是他們有足夠的體力一路過關斬將嗎？」南美洲冠軍巴西依舊高居世界足總排名龍頭，歐洲冠軍西班牙則名列第二。 |
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| The poll, however, also showed it was likely that South Africa, ranked 83rd in the world and facing top-20 teams France, Mexico and Uruguay in their first round group, will become the first host nation not to progress to the second round. "It's going be tough for South Africa, but the overwhelming sound of vuvuzelas will scare the pants off the Mexicans and the French," joked HSBC's economist. |
不過這項調查也顯示，全球排名第八十三、將於第一輪遭遇法國、墨西哥與烏拉圭等前廿強球隊的南非隊，很可能成為首支無法挺進第二輪的地主國球隊。一位匯豐銀行經濟學家開玩笑道：「南非隊會踢得很辛苦，不過震耳欲聾的加油喇叭聲會把墨西哥隊與法國隊的球員嚇個半死。」 |
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| Some forecasters have used complex statistical models to predict who will win the World Cup. JPMorgan said England would win based on models they uses to predict stock returns. UBS picked Brazil, Germany and Italy as the most likely winners based on a probability analysis. |
有些預言者甚至利用複雜的統計模組來預測誰會在世足賽奪冠。摩根大通集團表示，用來預測股票收益的模組顯示英格蘭隊會奪冠。瑞士銀行則根據或然率分析，預測巴西隊、德國隊與義大利隊最有可能奪冠。 |
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| Nevertheless, whichever team that ends up winning the World Cup trophy will be traveling in style, for luxury handbag maker Louis Vuitton has designed and crafted this year's trophy case. |
無論如何，不管是哪一隊最後奪得世足賽金盃，他們將豪華返鄉，因為時尚手提袋製造商路易威登設計並打造了今年的冠軍獎盃箱。 |
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| World News |
| Whaling rights or whale rights? |
捕鯨權還是鯨魚權？ |
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| A group of environmentalists and experts from philosophy, law and ethics are campaigning for "human rights" for whales and dolphins. |
一群環保人士和哲學、法律與倫理學領域的專家，正在為鯨魚和海豚的「人權」請命。 |
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| Local News |
| The Chinese Tower of Babel |
中文的「巴別塔」 |
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| Do you know what "xiao hong dian," or little red dot, means? Only Mandarin-speaking Singaporeans know that the phrase refers to Singapore's small size.
If you ask someone from China or Taiwan, however, you are likely to receive puzzled looks. There are many major differences in the way the Chinese language is used among speakers in China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Macau, Singapore, Malaysia and other Southeast Asian countries, and new words and phrases are being created every day. |
你知道「小紅點」是什麼意思嗎？只有說中文的新加坡人才知道，那個詞是指新加坡的「小尺碼」。不過，如果你問中國人或台灣人，你得到的回應可能是一臉困惑的表情。
來自中國、台灣、香港、澳門、新加坡、馬來西亞和其他東南亞國家的人所說的中文，在用法上有許多顯著差異，而且每天都有新的字詞創造出來。 |
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| In Other News |
| Li Bai woos Canada |
李白詩作令加拿大人為之著迷 |
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| The poems of Li Bai (A.D. 701-762) were celebrated on a June night in Vancouver where works of the famous literary master were recited in 10 languages as part of the ongoing Asian Heritage Month in the Canadian city. |
在溫哥華六月的某個夜晚，李白（西元七○一年至七六二年）的詩作獲得讚頌，在這座加拿大城市進行中的「亞洲傳統月」中，與會人士以十種語言朗誦這位知名文學大師的作品。 |
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