◎國際新聞中心
Shopping prolongs life, at least for the over 65s in Taiwan, according to research.
根據研究，購物延長壽命，至少對65歲以上的台灣人是這樣。
Even after adjusting for factors like physical and mental infirmity, men and women who shopped daily lived longer than those who shunned retail therapy, say scientists.
科學家說，即使是在調整身心虛弱等因素之後，每天購物的男女活得比避免零售治療的人久。
Shopping may provide companionship, exercise and an opportunity to maintain a healthy diet, they report in the Journal of Epidemiology & Community Health.
他們在《流行病學與社區健康期刊》報導，購物或許能提供友誼、運動以及維持健康飲食的機會。
A leading UK expert said the findings "made sense" since shopping involves physical activity, social interaction and keeping mentally active.
英國一名知名專家說，這項發現「有道理」，因為購物牽涉到身體活動、社會互動與保持精神活躍。
In the study, published online in the academic journal, researchers led by Dr Yu-Hung Chang of the Institute of Population Health Sciences, Taiwan, studied nearly 2,000 men and women aged 65 and over who lived independently in their own homes. They found those who shopped regularly lived longer than those who shopped just once a week or less, even after adjusting for factors such as physical limitations and cognitive decline.
在刊登於此份學術期刊的這項研究中，台灣群體健康科學研究所的張毓宏教授領導的研究人員，研究近2000名65歲以上獨立生活的男女。他們發現，即使是在調整身體限制與認知下降等因素之後，規律購物的人，活得比一週購物一次以下的人久。
新聞辭典
prolong：動詞，延長。例句：We were having such a good time that we decided to prolong our stay by another week.（我們玩得非常開心，所以決定再待1週。）
infirmty：名詞，虛弱。例句：She suffered from a long list of infirmities.（她體弱多病。）
shun：動詞，避免。例句：She has shunned publicity since she retired from the theatre.（她從劇場退休後，就避免出現在公開場合。）
◎國際新聞中心
Difficult-to-read fonts make for better learning, according to scientists. Researchers at Princeton University employed volunteers to learn made-up information about different types of aliens - and found that those reading harder fonts recalled more when tested 15 minutes later.
根據科學家指出，難讀的字體有助學習。普林斯頓大學的研究人員，請志願者學習有關不同類外星人的捏造資訊，結果發現，讀較難字體的人，在15分鐘後的測驗中記得較多。
They argue that schools could boost results by simply changing the font used in their basic teaching materials.
他們認為，學校可以簡單藉著改變基本教材中的字體，提高學習成果。
The 28 volunteers in the Princeton study were given 90 seconds to try to memorise a list of seven features for three different species of alien. The idea was to re-create the kind of learning in a biology class. Aliens were chosen to be sure that none of the volunteers’ prior knowledge interfered with the results.
普林斯頓這份研究中的28名志願者，有90秒可以嘗試記憶有關3種不同外星人的7種特徵表。實驗的概念是要重塑生物課的學習情景，之所以選擇外星人，是要確定志願者之前的知識不會影響結果。
The volunteers were distracted for 15 minutes, and then tested on how much they could remember. Researchers found that, on average, those given the harder-to-read fonts actually recalled 14% more. They believe that presenting information in a way that is hard to digest means a person has to concentrate more, and this leads to "deeper processing" and then "better retrieval" afterwards
志願者接著分心15分鐘，而後測試能記得多少。研究人員發現，拿到較難讀字體的人，實際上可想起來的多14％。他們認為，以較難消化的字體呈現資訊，代表一個人必須要更專心，這也會導致「較深度的處理」，以及之後「較佳的回想」。
新聞辭典
recall：動詞，回想，記得。例句：Can you recall what happened last night?（你記得昨晚發生甚麼事嗎？）
interfere with：片語，干擾。例句：Even a low level of noise interferes with my concentration.（即使是很低的噪音也會影響我的專注力。）
retrieval：名詞，恢復、取回，動詞為retrieve。例句：Computers are used to store and retrieve information efficiently.（電腦是用來有效儲存與擷取資訊。）
◎陳成良
In a bid to plug dwindling domestic consumption by tapping into overseas markets, some of Japan’s big-name retailers are telling their employees to start speaking English -- or find another job.
一些日本大型零售商希望透過拓展海外市場，緩解國內消費疲弱的壓力，因而要求雇員必須開始說英語，否則就請另謀高就。
As Japan’s population shrinks, the country’s retailers are increasingly looking to boost sales by expanding abroad and some firms are waking up to the necessity of being able to speak the global language of business in order to succeed overseas.
因日本人口減少，該國許多零售商越來越寄望拓展海外市場來提振業績。有些公司也逐漸意識到，只有掌握英語這種全球商業語言，才能在海外市場取得成功。
Rakuten, Japan’s biggest online retailer, plans to make English the firm’s official language, while Fast Retailing, operator of the Uniqlo apparel chain, wants to make English more common in its offices by 2012 and plans to test its employees for proficiency.
日本最大的網路零售商「樂天公司」計畫將英語作為公司的官方語言，而服裝連鎖業者「優衣庫」（Uniqlo）的母公司「Fast Retailing」希望到2012年，公司上下能更普遍地使用英語，並計畫測試員工的英語水準。
"It’s about stopping being a Japanese company. We will become a world company," Rakuten CEO Hiroshi Mikitani said last week at a news conference in Tokyo -- conducted almost entirely in English.
「不能再僅是一家日本公司了，我們將成為一家全球化的公司，」樂天執行長三木谷浩史上週在東京記者會上表示。這場記者會幾乎全用英語發言。
Employees at Rakuten will need to master English by 2012 to avoid facing the sack. "No English, no job," Mikitani told the Asahi newspaper.
樂天員工需在2012年前精通英語，以避免被開除的命運。三木谷浩史對朝日新聞說：「不會英語，就沒工作。」
新聞辭典
dwindling：形容詞，正在減少的；動詞原形為dwindle，減少。例句︰Taiwan’s population is expected to dwindle after 2050. （台灣的總人口預計在2050年後開始減少。）
tap into：動詞片語，打入（市場）。例句：The company is hoping to tap into a broader international market.（這家公司希望打入更大的國際市場。）
proficiency：名詞，精通；熟練。例句：He made little proficiency in literary accomplishments.（他在文學方面的成就不多。）
◎魏國金
Just five minutes of exercise a day in the great outdoors can improve mental health, according to a study.
根據一份研究，每天只要在野外運動5分鐘，就能增進心理健康。
Researchers from the University of Essex found that as little as five minutes of a "green activity" such as walking, gardening or cycling can boost mood and self esteem.
艾塞克斯大學的研究人員發現，短短5分鐘的「綠色活動」，例如走路、拈花惹草或騎腳踏車，能提升心情與自尊。
Many studies have shown that outdoor exercise can reduce the risk of mental illness and improve a sense of well-being, but Jules Pretty and Jo Barton, who led this study, said that until now no one knew how much time needed to be spent on green exercise for the benefits to show.
許多研究已顯示戶外運動能降低心理疾病的風險，並增進安適感，但主持這項研究的普雷蒂與巴頓表示，直到現在，沒有人知道需花多少時間在綠色運動上才會呈現出好處。
Barton and Pretty looked at data from 1,252 people of different ages, genders and mental health status taken from 10 existing studies in Britain. They analyzed activities such as walking, gardening, cycling, fishing, boating and horse-riding.
巴頓與普雷蒂檢視1252名不同年齡、性別與精神健康狀態者的資料，這些資料得自英國10項現有的研究。他們並分析諸如走路、園藝、騎自行車、釣魚、划船與騎馬等活動。
They found that the greatest health changes occurred in the young and the mentally ill, although people of all ages and social groups benefited. All natural environments were beneficial, including parks in towns or cities, they said, but green areas with water appeared to have a more positive effect.
他們發現最大的健康變化發生在年輕族群與精神疾病者，雖然所有年齡層與社會群體都獲益。所有的自然環境都有益，包括城鎮的公園，他們說，不過伴有水色的綠區顯然更有正面效果。
新聞辭典
esteem︰名詞，敬重、尊重。例句︰The affair has lowered their esteem of him.（緋聞事件折損了他們對他的敬重。）a man of great esteem則指德高望重之人。
boost︰動詞，增加、促進、激勵，例句︰That boosted my confidence.（那增強了我的信心。）
well-being︰名詞，安康、安適。例句︰It gave us a sense of well-being to gaze the beautiful seaside.（凝望美麗海濱，給我們心曠神怡之感。）
◎國際新聞中心
Napping after learning something new could help you commit it to memory - as long as you dream, scientists say. They found people who dream about a new task perform it better on waking than those who do not sleep or do not dream.
科學家說，學習新東西之後小睡片刻，可能幫你記住新事物，只要你有作夢的話。他們發現，夢到新任務的人，醒來之後，這項新任務可以做的比沒有睡覺或沒有作夢的人好。
Volunteers were asked to learn the layout of a 3D computer maze so they could find their way within the virtual space several hours later. Those allowed to take a nap and who also remembered dreaming of the task, found their way to a landmark quicker.
志願者被要求學習３Ｄ電腦迷宮的佈局，這樣他們在數小時之後身處虛擬空間時，才可以找到路。可以打個小盹、以及也記得夢到這項工作的人，可以較快找到去地標的路。
The researchers think the dreams are a sign that unconscious parts of the brain are working hard to process information about the task. Dr Robert Stickgold of Harvard Medical School, one of the authors of the paper, said dreams may be a marker that the brain is working on the same problem at many levels.
研究人員認為，夢境是大腦無意識部分正努力處理工作資訊的跡象。報告作者之一、哈佛醫學院的史迪克高德博士說，夢境或許是大腦在許多層級處理同一問題的標記。
新聞辭典
nap：動詞／名詞，小睡。例句：Grandpa usually has/takes a nap after lunch.（爺爺吃午餐之後通常會小睡片刻。）
commit sth to memory：片語，熟記。例句：We have to commit this rule to memory.（我們必須牢記這條規則。）
layout：名詞，設計，格局。例句：I like the layout of the house.（我喜歡這間房子的格局。）
◎國際新聞中心
Girls who eat a lot of meat during childhood tend to start their periods earlier than others, a study suggests.
研究顯示，童年時期吃很多肉類的女孩，月經可能比其他女孩來得早。
UK researchers compared the diets of more than 3,000 12-year-old girls. They found high meat consumption at age three（over eight portions a week）and age seven（12 portions）was strongly linked with early periods.
英國研究人員比較3000多名12歲女童的飲食，發現在3歲（一週超過8份）與7歲（12份）之間攝取大量肉類，與月經來得早有密切關聯。
Writing in Public Health Nutrition, the researchers said a meat-rich diet might prepare the body for pregnancy, triggering an earlier puberty.
研究人員在《公共衛生營養》撰文指出，富含肉類的飲食，或許讓身體為懷孕做準備，才會導致較早進入青春期。
During the 20th Century, the average age at which girls started their periods fell fairly dramatically. This is widely thought to be due to better nutrition and rising levels of obesity, which has an impact on hormones.
在20世紀，女孩初經年齡顯著下降。這種情況普遍被認為是因為營養較好與肥胖程度增加，對荷爾蒙都有影響。
新聞辭典
period：名詞，月經，正式名稱為menstrual period 。例句：She’d missed a period and was worried.（她月經沒來很擔心。）
consumption：名詞，攝取（食物），動詞為consume。例句：As a nation, our consumption of junk food is horrifying.（以國家而言，我們的垃圾食物攝取量相當可怕。）
puberty：名詞，青春期。例句：At puberty, pubic hair develops and girls begin to menstruate.（青春期到來時，陰毛會開始長出，女孩子開始行經。）
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