Maria Sharapova is making lots of money! The 19-year-old tennis star is second in the 2006 Women's Tennis Association Tour rankings. Sharapova is a very talented player who wins competitions. But her career also helps her earn money in another way.
Like many sports stars, Maria signs agreements with big companies. These agreements are called endorsements. She agrees to use a company's products so that her fans and the public will want to buy them.
She signed a lifetime deal with tennis racket and apparel company Prince last year for a reported US$25 million (NT$815 million). She also endorses Tropicana, Canon, Colgate, Nike, Tag Heuer, Land Rover and others. Her yearly income from endorsements, appearance fees, prize money and other sources is believed to be about US$30 million (NT$978 million).
PHOTO: AP
If the companies see their stars use a rival companies products they get very angry.
So next time you see famous people using a product, just remember — they often get paid a lot of money to do so, so think twice before you rush out and buy it.
(Catherine Thomas,staff writer)
瑪麗亞.莎拉波娃賺很多錢!這名十九歲的網球選手在二○○六年女子網球協會巡迴賽中排名第二。莎拉波娃是非常有天份的選手,贏得過許多比賽,而她的職業也幫助她在其他方面獲利。
瑪麗亞和許多運動明星一樣,與大廠牌簽合約,這些合約叫「代言」,她同意使用一個公司的產品,讓她的球迷和社會大眾也想購買這些產品。
去年她跟網球拍以及成衣公司「王子」以據報兩千五百萬美元(新台幣八億一千五百萬元)的金額簽下終身合約。她還代言純品康納、佳能、高露潔、耐吉、豪雅錶、路華以及其他廠牌。一年來自品牌代言、出席費、獎金和其他來源的收入,據估約三千萬美元(新台幣九億七千八百萬元)。
廠商如果看到他們的明星使用競爭對手的產品,他們會非常生氣。
下次你看到名人在使用一樣產品,記得,他們通常拿了大把鈔票,在衝動購買這項產品前,請三思而後行。
(翻譯︰鄭湘儀)
A: Artificial intelligence technology has been causing controversy lately: a student was caught cheating with AI to win the grand prize in an art contest. B: That’s so absurd. Does this mean that AI paints better than humans? A: Maybe. Luckily, the student was later disqualified. B: And more absurdly, it’s becoming more and more popular to use AI technology to “resurrect” people. A: Yeah, some netizens even posted videos featuring the late singer CoCo Lee, who was “resurrected” by them with AI software. A: 人工智慧的爭議不斷,有學生違規使用AI參加美術展,甚至贏得首獎。 B: 真誇張,這是不是代表AI比人類還強大? A: 或許吧,幸好得獎資格被取消。 B: 還有更誇張的︰讓死者重現的「AI復活」技術越來越熱門。 A: 對啊,還有網友製作已故歌后李玟「復活」的影片呢! (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times/台北時報張聖恩)
It’s no secret that Japanese people have a deep affection for noodles. Like in the rest of East Asia, noodles are an important staple food, second only to rice. Japanese people have enjoyed noodles for over 1,000 years. The first noodles came from China and were introduced around 800 CE. As time passed, noodles in Japan not only became widespread but also developed some unique Japanese characteristics. The three most popular types of noodles in Japan are ramen, soba, and udon. Ramen, typically made from wheat flour, is usually thin and firm. The dough is kneaded and left to
Rice is an essential ingredient in Taiwanese cuisine. Many foods are made of rice, adding more variety to our cooking, such as rice cake, or “gui.” Wagui is made by steaming rice flour batter in a bowl. The term “gui” refers to a type of food made from rice, while “wa” refers to a bowl. The pronunciation of “gui” in Taiwanese Hokkien is similar to the word for “nobility” in Chinese, so it is common for people to prepare various types of gui, including wagui, as offerings to the gods or ancestors,. 米是台灣重要的主食,用米製成的食品十分多元,豐富我們的飲食,如米做成的「粿」。粿的意思是米做成的糕點,碗粿是將在來米漿倒入碗中蒸熟,因而得名。粿因為音同「貴」,因此碗粿等粿食常用作供品祭拜神明和祖先。 nobility (n.) 高貴,高尚;貴族 offering (n.) 供品 While Taiwan may not be
Continued from yesterday(延續自昨日) https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang As with many aspects of Japanese culture, there is etiquette to follow when you enjoy noodles. To fully experience noodles like a local on your next visit to Japan, consider these simple guidelines. First, be careful where you put your chopsticks. Don’t leave them sticking up in the broth or set them at the side of the bowl. When you have finished eating or if you’re taking a break, place them on the chopstick rest next to the bowl. Also, it is impolite to wave chopsticks around or bring them above mouth-level. Second, don’t take too