疫情持續，但學習不能中斷。

今天與同學分享Presentality最新的寫作技巧分析。

英文寫作絕對不只是將單字句型套用在模板上就好了。

用專業的寫作方法讓你的寫作有意義!

★★★★★★★★★★★★

最近疫情再次高升，駐台灣的Bloomberg 記者寫了一篇文章：

Complacency Let Covid Erode Taiwan’s Only Line of Defense

自滿讓 COVID 侵蝕了台灣唯一的防線

文章：https://bloom.bg/3ywfKA9

我們來看看Bloomberg寫的一篇好文章：

★★★★★★★★★★★★

📌 結構：當調查故事寫

這篇文章讀起來一點都不無聊，不只是因為它攸關我們的社會，也是因為他在結構上，就像一個偵探調查的故事：

1. Opening line: 戲劇性開場，不要無聊
2. Background: 然後再給簡短背景
3. Key moment: 影響後續發展最關鍵的事件
4. Outcome: 這個決定的後果
5. What to do: 國際專家建議應該怎麼做
6. But.....: 可惜，可能做不到
7. Details: 後面的部分，再進入細節

★★★★★★★★★★★★

📌 最好的開頭 = 簡短有力、抓住注意力、又可以做結論

我們先來看開頭三段：

All the virus had to do was get through the border.

Until this week, Taiwan’s Covid-19 containment appeared to be so effective that virtually no other defenses were put in place: few tests, no local surveillance to pick up undetected infection and close to zero vaccination.

Lauded as one of most successful places in the world at containment, a high level of complacency about the risks had set in among both the public and authorities. Covid-19 seemed to be something happening only in the outside world.

如果是我們認識大部分的人來寫，通常會從第二段開始。為什麼？因為總是要解釋背景嘛！而且任何人在研究這個議題，都會從背景開始教育自己，所以就不自覺的從背景寫起。

但他們不這麼做，反而以一個吸引人的方式開頭：
All the virus had to do was get through the border.

這個開頭有幾個優點：
•簡短一行，讓人不會看到一大坨字就不想要繼續看
•有故事性：好像病毒是一個入侵的敵人
•又是結論：怎麼會發生？一旦病毒溜進來了，就會發生

這種是非常理想的開頭：因為就算我沒有時間看剩下的，也會理解到文章的重點：邊境守的很嚴，但是裡面很鬆散。

第一句，下的太好了。

★★★★★★★★★★★★

📌 給一點背景後，馬上提到關鍵一個決定

記者們解釋背景的篇幅，就只有三段。他們很快就鎖定關鍵的一個 (錯誤) 決定：

The virus’s opening was an ill-fated decision on April 15 to shorten quarantine for airline crew to just three days, as carriers struggled to operate their cargo lines with staff undergoing 14-day isolation periods. Infected pilots introduced a more transmissible U.K. variant, whose spread was then accelerated through a network of “hostess bars” -- places both staff and patrons were reluctant to be associated with, making contact tracing more difficult.

如果他們再花 1-2 段解釋背景，文章就會變得有點無聊，會流失讀者。

所以他們在這裡提到關鍵的失策。

📌 Note：寫作語氣相對正式

這幾位記者，也許是受 Bloomberg 整體風格影響，還算正式。

從哪邊看的出來呢？

The virus's opening was an ill-fated decision...

輕鬆口語化的文章，絕對不會用 "ill-fated" (ill 就是生病/不好嘛，fate 就是命運，所以就是「之後的命運不好」的一個決定。這是一個很不錯的字就是了。

另一個例子，看這句：

Infected pilots introduced a more transmissible U.K. variant, whose spread was then accelerated through a network of “hostess bars” -- places both staff and patrons were reluctant to be associated with, making contact tracing more difficult.

哇噻，尤其 "reluctant to be associated with"，好。。。委婉啊

怎麼樣寫的平易近人一點？

Infected pilots carried a more transmissible U.K. variant, which then spread quickly through a network of "hostess bars". This also made contact tracing harder — because staff and customers didn't want to admit that they worked at or visited these bars.

稍微長一點，但是用的字都比較直白簡單。

★★★★★★★★★★★★

📌 強調嚴重性

這個失策跟破口，有多嚴重的後果？

Taiwan reported 267 new infections Wednesday, bringing the total over the past few days to 1,291 -- a small number in global terms but an astonishing one in a place that, before May 1, had posted just 1,132 cases during the entire pandemic.

The surge from zero to quadruple digits signals that undetected spread has been occurring for months, and concern is now growing that Taiwan will go the way of other cautionary tales, from the outbreak last year in Australia’s Victoria state that took a brutal three-month lockdown to quell, to Thailand’s ongoing surge driven by prison clusters.

"The surge from zero to quadruple"

這邊，寫的非常好，因為雖然不是真正的 rhyme，還是聽起來很近，所以有節奏感。

"Go the way of other cautionary tales" 又是一個文筆很好的寫法，就是「變得跟那些拿來警惕大家的故事一樣」的意思。

但是記得，別在聊天的時候用這些啊，對方會覺得你很奇怪。

這邊他們把最壞的可能性帶進來：就是台灣可能變得跟那些 cautionary tales 一樣。

這邊也讓讀者緊張起來。

但因為他們寫 "concern is now growing..."，又沒有說「誰的 concern」，所以應該要馬上帶具有可信度的 source 進來：

“If they have 300 diagnosed cases, they have 3,000 cases in the community -- they just don’t know it.” said Gregory Poland, a virologist and director of the Mayo Clinic’s Vaccine Research Group. “It’s going to require a hard lockdown, what’s called a circuit-breaker approach, and then getting the vaccine out as quickly as they can.”

這樣就比較有可信度了，也指出一個解決的可能性：lock down，然後疫苗。

但是...

★★★★★★★★★★★★

需要完整分析的同學請留言「看 Bloomberg學資深記者如何寫文章」。

我們每天都在看跟英文溝通/寫作有關的東西，如果想要透過這些「閱讀筆記」跟我們一起看，可在 FB 追蹤我們：https://www.facebook.com/presentality/

★★★★★★★★★★★★

Presentality系列文章:

📌 看貝佐斯致亞馬遜股東的最後一封信，學一些英文寫作小撇步
https://bit.ly/3xCN1cC

📌 英文演講實用的結構與技巧
https://bit.ly/2PHu3Ax

📌 在演講中的四種敘述角度
https://bit.ly/39tNUtv

📌 詩人Amanda Gorman的英文演講技巧
https://bit.ly/39sI3on

📌 從 Most Dangerous Place 文章，看經濟學人寫作邏輯
https://bit.ly/3htqJEs

📌 寫作的終極目標是「提供價值」
https://bit.ly/3yA3gYe

【政策簡單說】創新百百種，聽過 #跨域創新 嘸?－利基者篇📜

連載了好幾回，#利基者(#Niche_Player)介紹篇終於來啦～

🔍 #利基者(Niche Player)：
#生態系 主要參與成員，貢獻獨特的資源或能力，來共同形塑生態系的價值。

這到底是什麼意思，又該如何運用呢(◜◔。◔◝)？

➡在 #第29期中小企業趨勢監測報 中以 #智慧家庭 為例，說明如何利用 #AIoT 物聯網科技 協助傳統家電家具製造商的中小企業轉型，走進 #智慧生活跨域創新生態系 ٩(๑•̀ω•́๑)۶

想看更多精彩內容，請點擊👇
https://www.apecscmc.org/publication

Previously on the #ECO, we introduced what an #ECO is and the ECO leader. This time, we would like to give a brief introduction to the other main participants of ECO.

Niche players -> contribute their unique resources or abilities to co-shape the values of ECO.

Is niche player still unfamiliar with you?

In the APEC SME Monitor Issue 29, we use the #smart_home as an example and explain that how #AIOT technology helps traditional small and medium-sized home appliance manufacturers transform and advance into the cross-sector innovation ecosystem of smart life.

Article download and more articles, please click here
https://www.apecscmc.org/publication

#跨域創新 #利基者
#第29期中小企業趨勢監測報

#EZTALK #你不知道的美國大小事
#FoodIdiom #corn

💬美國生活用語：Corn玉米🌽

1⃣corn-fed
2⃣ pee/piss in sb.’s cornflakes
3⃣ corny
4⃣ cornball

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Corn is a grain with a special place in the hearts of Americans. First introduced to early settlers by the Indians, it has since become a staple of the American diet, used to make everything from popcorn and muffins to corn chips and corn syrup. Naturally, corn has become part of our language as well.
玉米在美國人心中是種特別的榖物。一開始是由印地安人介紹給最早的一批移民者，自此之後成為美國的重要主食之一，玉米可以用來作成各式各樣的食物，從爆米花、瑪芬、玉米片到玉米糖漿皆可見。理所當然地，玉米也成為英語語言的一部分。

Driving though the Midwest, you’ll pass by endless fields of corn, which is eaten by animals and people alike. The adjective1⃣ “corn-fed” is used to describe animals fed or fattened with corn, i.e. “corn-fed hogs.” What about people? If you call someone corn-fed, it means they look plump, well-fed and robust. Ex: Several corn-fed Midwesterners tried out for the football team. When describing people and places, corn-fed can also mean unsophisticated and provincial. Ex: Karen grew up in a small, corn-fed Kansas town.
只要開車經過美國中西部，你一定會路過一望無際的玉米田，這是種植給動物與人類吃的。形容詞corn-fed就是用來形容以玉米餵食或增肥的動物，如corn-fed hogs（玉米豬）。那人呢？如果你說某人是corn-fed，其實是說這人看起來豐潤、吃得很好、容光煥發，如：Several corn-fed Midwesterners tried out for the football team.（好幾位厚實健壯的中西部人前來參加美式足球隊選拔。）corn-fed如果用來敘述人或地方，也可以指「未經世事、天真的」以及「守舊狹隘的」，如：Karen grew up in a small, corn-fed Kansas town.（凱倫在堪薩斯州的一個守舊的小村落長大。）

Cornflakes are a popular American breakfast, and if someone peed in them, you’d be pretty mad, right? 2⃣That’s exactly what “pee/piss in sb.’s cornflakes means. Ex: Gee, I wonder who peed in the manager’s cornflakes today.
玉米片是非常受歡迎的美國式早餐，如果有人在上面撒尿，你一定會抓狂吧！這就是pee/piss in sb.’s cornflakes的意思。如：Gee, I wonder who peed in the manager’s cornflakes today.（老天，不知道今天是誰惹毛了經理。）
Since corn is such a simple and common type of food, can you guess what the 3⃣ adjective “corny” means? If a joke, story or song is corny, it’s silly, trite or overly sentimental. Ex: Dad always tells such corny jokes. 4⃣ The adjective “cornball” has the same meaning. Ex: Martin has such a cornball sense of humor. And it can also be a noun. Ex: Martin is such a cornball.
既然玉米是如此簡單又常見的食物，你可以猜猜看 corny 是什麼意思呢？如果有個笑話或故事是 corny 的，就是在說它們是「愚蠢、老套且濫情的」，如：Dad always tells such corny jokes.（老爸老是喜歡講這種老掉牙的笑話。）cornball 當形容詞也有一樣的意思，如：Martin has such a cornball sense of humor.（馬丁的幽默感實在有夠老掉牙。）也可以直接當名詞使用，如：Martin is such a cornball.（馬丁真是個愛講冷笑話的人。）

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🔔 按下「搶先看」，每週五【美國大小事】，由 Judd 編審分享最即時美國新鮮事！想知道更多美國文化，請看 👉 http://bit.ly/EZTalk嚴選

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