We have signs of very great changes occurring on the planet. Everything has happened so fast. Creeks are drying up that have never dried up in a lifetime. We’ve got a forest that’s already on the edge of disappearing. We’re going into uncharted territory. Our planet is at a crossroads. Global warming isn’t out of control, but it soon could be. The warning signs are all around us. This is the challenge of climate change: What can we do about global warming? What will happen to the Earth if we don’t? The temperature is rising and each degree is critical. A 6°C increase is almost unimaginable.
我們已經看見地球出現巨變的跡象，事情發生得非常快。這一代從未乾涸的溪流正在枯涸森林面臨消失威脅。我們開始走入未知的領域，地球正面對轉捩點。全球暖化尚未失控，但可能很快就一發不可收拾，身邊四處可見警告跡象，這是氣候變遷帶來的挑戰：我們該如何減緩全球暖化？如果不著手處理，地球會有什麼下場？氣溫正在升高，每上升一度都有嚴重影響。氣溫升高六度的後果不堪設想。
Imagine what the 21st century will be like if global warming accelerates. Where will the next super-storm hit? The next scorching heat wave? As the world warms degree by degree, where will the next catastrophe hit? The debate has ended. Scientists around the globe agree we now live in a world warmer by almost 1°C. An armada tracks the earth’s vital signs, with thousands of ships at sea. Meanwhile, there are tens of thousands of stations on land, and satellites monitor from space. Scientists feed the data into the most advanced computer models to calculate what it means for our future. The predictions are alarming.
想像全球暖化加劇的二十一世紀，下一場超級風暴將襲擊何處？下一場炙人熱浪呢？隨著全球均溫逐步上升，一場重大天災又將侵襲何處？爭論已經落幕，全球科學家一致指出，全球均溫已升高近攝氏一度，全世界嚴陣以待，追蹤地球的生命跡象。海上有數千船隻，陸上有數萬監測站，還有衛星從太空監控。科學家將資料輸入最先進的電腦模型，估算地球可能面對的未來，預測結果令人擔憂。
In four decades, glaciers in the Himalayas — the source of water for millions — could be gone. Within 50 years, the melting of Greenland’s ice sheet could be unstoppable. By the end of this century, the Amazon rainforest — home to half the world’s biodiversity — could wither to an arid savannah. We’re on the brink of living in a world 1°C warmer, hotter than it’s been in thousands of years. A temperature rise between 1°C and 6°C is possible over the next century. Each degree means a radically different future. In some parts of the world, the first signs of global warming may be arriving with a vengeance. In Australia, bush fires are a natural part of the ecosystem, especially in drought years. But climate change may be pushing conditions from bad to worse. Australia’s east coast is a tinderbox. In the winter of 2001, more than 900 fires encircled Sydney. They called it Black Christmas.
四十年後，數百萬人仰賴的水源──喜馬拉雅山區的冰河，可能消失。五十年內，格陵蘭冰層可能全部融化。本世紀末，擁有地球半數生物多樣性的亞馬遜雨林，可能變成乾枯的熱帶草原。全球均溫正處於升高近一度的邊緣，超越數千年來的紀錄。未來一百年間，氣溫有可能升高一到六度。每升高一度都將讓地球的未來出現劇烈變化。在部分地區，全球暖化的最初跡象或許已經大張旗鼓展現。野火是澳洲生態系統中自然的環節，在旱年火勢尤熾。但氣候變遷或許讓情況愈下。澳洲東岸成為一觸即發的火場。二００一年冬季，雪梨周圍發生九百多起野火，澳洲人稱之為「黑色聖誕節」。
A: It’s a pity that I can’t go to Australian pop diva Kylie Minogue’s concert. B: Why not? A: Hit Japanese singer Kenshi Yonezu is staging two shows at the Taipei Arena this weekend, and I already bought tickets long ago. B: Wow, isn’t he one of the most popular Japanese singers in recent years? A: And Yonezu’s megahit “Lemon” topped the Billboard Japan Hot 100’s year-end chart in 2018 and 2019 consecutively. A: 我不能去澳洲歌后凱莉米諾的演唱會真可惜。 B: 為什麼？ A: 日本人氣歌手米津玄師週末將在小巨蛋熱唱兩場，我早早就買票啦。 B: 哇他可是日本近年來最紅的歌手之一。 A: 米津的神曲《Lemon》甚至還在2018、2019年連續稱霸告示牌日本單曲榜年度冠軍！ (By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times／台北時報張迪)
A: Australian pop diva Kylie Minogue is set to visit Taiwan for the third time on Saturday. B: I remember that her Taipei concerts in 2008 and 2011 caused a sensation, and I love her megahit “Can’t Get You Out of My Head.” A: This will be her first time performing in the southern city of Kaohsiung. B: Many music critics praise Kylie’s show as “a must-see in your lifetime.” A: Let’s go to Kaohsiung this weekend. A: 澳洲歌后凱莉米諾週六即將三度訪台。 B: 她曾在2008、2011年兩度在台北開唱都造成大轟動，我超愛她的神曲《Can’t Get You Out of My Head》。 A: 這次可是她首度唱進南台灣的高雄呢。 B: 許多樂評家說她的演唱會是「此生必看」！ A: 那我們週末去高雄吧。 （By Eddy Chang, Taipei Times／台北時報張迪）
The Lemon Festival is a fun annual celebration in Menton, France. This festival began in 1934 and honors the region’s exceptional lemons. __1__ in February during the lemon season, the festival features beautiful floats and sculptures covered with dazzling lemons and oranges. These citrus creations are on display in the bright sunshine throughout the day, while at night, they are lit up and turn the town into a __2__ spectacle. The festival’s origins can be traced back to the late 19th century, when Menton was a major lemon producer. __3__, hotels would decorate their spaces with lemons and oranges
中國海關總署突然發布通知，指台灣輸入的釋迦及蓮霧檢出介殼蟲「大洋臀紋粉蚧」，決定暫停輸入。 In September 2021, China’s customs administration announced that it would suspend imports of sweetsop and jambu from Taiwan, citing discoveries of Planococcus minor, a type of mealybug. 蓮霧 (jambu/champoo, Syzygium samarangense) ，又名洋蒲桃，是桃金孃科熱帶水果，原產於印尼和馬來西亞，在星、馬稱作水蓊，中、港、澳稱作天桃。 蓮霧學名中的種小名 samarangense，係因模式標本採自印尼的Semarang (三寶瓏) 而得名。 蓮霧馬來語稱為 jambu air，第二個字 air讀作 /?a??(r)/，是水的意思，荷蘭人從印尼引進台灣，台語音譯為蓮霧 ian-b?。 以往蓮霧常見譯為 wax apple，聽起來好像素描靜物用的蠟製水果 (Wax Fruit)，曾有人問美國朋友要不要吃蓮霧? Care for a wax apple? 對方回一句：Why not a real one? 近來美國市場流行泰語的講法 champoo。蓮霧果實長得像鈴鐺，因此又稱為 bell-fruit。 Syzygium samarangense is a tropical fruit in the family Myrtaceae, native to the Greater Sunda Islands and the Malay Peninsula. Common names in English include champoo, jambu, bell fruit, rose apple, Java apple, and wax apple. In Taiwan, the dark red cultivars are nicknamed “Black
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