- Desire to exercise ‘can drop by a third in winter’
- Louis Pasteur’s devotion to truth transformed what we know about health and disease
- ‘We are very frustrated’: World Cup teams in Qatar ax pro-LGBTQ armbands after FIFA threat
- A museum 2,300 years in the making
- How the Great Depression shaped people’s DNA
- AI learns the art of Diplomacy
Desire to exercise ‘can drop by a third in winter’
運動慾望「可能會在冬天下降三分之一」
Health
A fifth of adults see their exercise levels drop by as much as 37 percent during the winter months, a survey claims. A poll of 2,000 adults revealed they exercise an average of four times a week during summer, but this decreases during the colder months, with 31 percent less active then than at any other time of the year. Nearly three-quarters (72 percent) of those put the drop in activity down to the colder temperatures, with 57 percent put off by the dark mornings and evenings. The spring and autumn months were the most popular time of year to get in shape, with 49 percent wishing they could maintain the healthy mindset they adopt in warmer months across the cold, dark winters. But winter is a season for indulgence with 40 percent enjoying more food in December than at any other time of the year, as temptations peak with Christmas parties and food-centered celebrations.
--from Independent
一項研究調查顯示，1/5的成年人發現他們在冬季的運動量下跌了37%。一項針對兩千名成年人的問卷調查指出，人們夏季平均每週會鍛煉4次，但在天氣較冷的月份會減少次數，與其他時間相比，運動量會減少31%。近3/4 (72%）的人將運動量減少歸因於較低的氣溫，57%的人則被黑暗的早晨與夜晚勸退。春季與秋季是一年中健身最流行的時候，49%的人希望他們能夠在寒冷、黑暗的冬天保持擁有和較溫暖的月份相同的健身心態。然而冬天是放縱的季節，40%的人會在12月攝入比一年中的其他時期還要多的食物，因為以聖誕節及其他相關食物為中心聚會的誘惑度將在這個時刻達到巔峰。
--摘錄翻譯自Independent
Louis Pasteur’s devotion to truth transformed what we know about health and disease
路易斯·巴斯德 （Louis Pasteur）對真相的熱愛改變了我們對健康和疾病的認識
Health
Great scientists become immortalized in various ways. Some through names for obscure units of measurement (à la Hertz, Faraday and Curie). Others in elements on the periodic table (Mendeleev, Seaborg, Bohr, among many others). But only one has been honored on millions and millions of cartons of milk: the French chemist, biologist and evangelist for experimental science Louis Pasteur. Pasteur ranked behind only Darwin among the most exceptional biological scientists of the 19th century. Pasteur not only made milk safe to drink, but also rescued the beer and wine industry. He established the germ theory of disease, saved the French silkworm population, confronted the scourges of anthrax and rabies, and transformed the curiosity of vaccination against smallpox into a general strategy for treating and preventing human diseases. He invented microbiology and established the foundations for immunology.
--from ScienceNews
偉大的科學家以各種方式永垂不朽。有些人留下名字來代表模糊的測量單位（如赫茲Hz、法拉第F、居里Ci），還有人在元素週期表里留下足跡（門捷列夫Md、西博格Sg、玻爾Bh等）。但只有一人在數百萬箱牛奶上獲得榮譽：法國的化學家、生物學家和實驗科學傳播者: 路易斯·巴斯德（Louis Pasteur）。巴斯德在19世紀最傑出的生物學家排行中僅次於達爾文。他不僅使得牛奶能被安全飲用，還拯救了啤酒與葡萄酒釀造行業。他也建立了疾病的細菌學說，挽救了法國的養殖蠶族群；對抗炭疽病（anthrax）和狂犬病（rabies）；甚至把對於接種天花疫苗的好奇心轉化為研究治療和預防人類疾病的總體策略。他所發明發展的微生物學為將來的免疫學奠定了基礎。
--摘錄翻譯自ScienceNews
‘We are very frustrated’: World Cup teams in Qatar ax pro-LGBTQ armbands after FIFA threat
「我們感到非常沮喪」：卡塔爾世界杯球隊在 FIFA 威脅後取下支持 LGBTQ 的臂章
Culture
The European teams competing at the 2022 Qatar World Cup walked back their plans to wear “OneLove” armbands in support of LGBTQ rights during the tournament, they announced Monday, after warnings from international soccer governing body FIFA that they would be penalized for doing so. Captains of the teams from the seven European nations competing in the World Cup — England, Wales, Germany, Denmark, Belgium, Switzerland, and the Netherlands — made the announcement concerning the rainbow armbands, which are meant to signal support for diversity and inclusion. In an unprecedented move just hours before matches began, FIFA warned it would issue a yellow card to any player wearing the armband. Two yellow cards in a game mean the player is sent off the field.
--from CNBC
參加 2022 年卡塔爾世界杯的歐洲球隊在週一宣佈取消了他們在比賽期間佩戴「OneLove」臂章以支持 LGBTQ 權利的計劃，因為國際足球管理機構（國際足聯; FIFA） 警告他們將因此受到處罰。參加世界杯的七個歐洲國家: 英格蘭、威爾士、德國、丹麥、比利時、瑞士和荷蘭的隊長宣布了有關彩虹臂章的消息，這意味著對多樣性和包容性的支持。 然而，就在比賽開始前幾個小時，FIFA採取了前所未有的舉措，警告說主辦單位將向任何佩戴臂章的球員發出黃牌，而一場比賽中兩張黃牌意味著該球員被罰下場。
--摘錄翻譯自CNBC
A museum 2,300 years in the making
一座擁有兩千三百年歷史的博物館
Culture
Built on the site of Gadsden's Wharf on the Cooper River, once one of the most prolific slave-trading ports in the US. Africans who survived the grueling Atlantic crossing awaited their fate in the warehouses surrounding the wharf before being sold on the auction block. This site is ground zero for the experience of Africans in America. In the soon-to-open museum, their history will unfold across nine galleries and a memorial garden.
--from BBC Travel
該博物館建在庫珀河上的加茲登碼頭，這曾是美國最多奴隸貿易的港口之一。遠渡大西洋倖存下來的非洲人在碼頭周圍的倉庫中等待他們的命運，接著在拍賣區被出售。這是非洲人在美國的經歷的起點。在即將開放的博物館中，他們的歷史將在九個畫廊和一個紀念花園中揭開序幕。
--摘錄翻譯自BBC Travel
How the Great Depression shaped people’s DNA
大蕭條如何形塑人們的DNA
Sciences
The worst recession in US history shaped how well people would age — before they were even born. Researchers have found that the cells of people who were conceived during the Great Depression, which lasted from 1929 to 1939 and, at its height, saw about 25% of the US workforce unemployed, show signs of accelerated ageing. The study authors measured these changes in the cells’ epigenome — the collection of chemical markers attached to DNA that determines when, where and by how much genes are expressed in each cell. And they think the pattern of markers that they uncovered could be linked to higher rates of both chronic illness and death. The work, published on 8 November in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, adds to a cache of studies indicating that exposure to hardship such as stress and starvation during the earliest stages of development can shape human health for decades.
--from Nature news
美國歷史上最嚴重的經濟衰退影響了人們的老化的速度－甚至是在他們出生前。研究人員發現那些在1929年至1939年的大蕭條期間（巔峰時，美國約有25%的勞動力失業）受孕而生的人們，其細胞表現出快速老化的現象。此研究作者量測了細胞表關基因組的變化－與「決定時間、區域和基因數量表現於各個細胞的DNA」相關的化學標記採樣。而他們認為所發現的標記模式可能與慢性病罹患率和死亡率較高有關。此結果與一系列研究指出：「在發育的最初階段，處於壓力和飢餓等困境可能會影響人類健康數十年」，在11月8日發表於《美國國家科學院院刊》。
--摘錄翻譯自Nature news
AI learns the art of Diplomacy
人工智慧學習外交藝術
Sciences
Diplomacy, many a statesperson has argued, is an art: one that requires not just strategy, but also intuition, persuasion, and even subterfuge—human skills that have long been off-limits to even the most powerful artificial intelligence (AI) approaches. Now, an AI algorithm from the company Meta has shown it can beat many humans in the board game Diplomacy, which requires both strategic planning and verbal negotiations with other players. The work, researchers say, could point the way toward virtual exercise coaches and dispute mediators. International chatbot diplomacy may not be far behind.
--from Science news
許多政治家主張「外交是一門藝術」：一門不僅需要策略，還需要直覺、說服力，甚至是詭計－這項即使在最強大的人工智能（AI）方法中也長期被排除的人類技能。現在，Meta公司的人工智慧演算法顯示，它可以在一款需要戰略規劃和與其他玩家的口頭談判的棋盤遊戲「外交」中擊敗許多人類。研究人員說，這項結果可以為虛擬運動教練和爭議調解人指明方向。國際聊天機器人外交可能也會迎頭趕上。
--摘錄翻譯自Science news