A: Why are you still reading comics? Don’t you have an exam coming up soon?
B: I have too much exam stress, so I need some down time.
A: You already failed the midterms. If you don’t pass this time you’re going to flunk the course!
Photo: Pixabay 照片： Pixabay
B: Fear not! I will be burning the midnight oil the day before the exam and study really hard then. It will be fine.
A: You can’t always leave everything to the last minute.
A: 你怎麼還在看漫畫？不是快考試了嗎？
B: 考試壓力大，我需要放鬆一下啊。
A: 你期中考已經不及格了，如果這次再考不過，你這科就會被當掉了！
B: 放心啦！我考試前一天再開個夜車好好唸一下就可以了。
A: 你不要每次都臨時抱佛腳。
（Translated by Paul Cooper, Taipei Times∕台北時報林俐凱）
Audio recordings for Speak Up! dialogues will be suspended until further notice due to the pandemic.
A: According to reporter Joon Lee’s analysis, what are other reasons why the Los Angeles Dodgers made back baseball superstar Shohei Ohtani’s huge contract so quickly? B: Second, a lot of Japanese and global enterprises are eager to benefit from the “Ohtani effect”. . . A: That’s sure to increase the Dodgers’ bargaining chips in negotiations. B: Lastly, all this media coverage is elevating the Dodgers’ brand to a new level, boosting the value of the franchise. A: I can’t wait to see a battle between Ohtani and “Team Taiwan” at the 2026 World Baseball Classic. A: 根據記者Joon Lee的分析，洛杉磯道奇隊和球星大谷翔平的巨約快速回本還有哪些原因？ B: 第二、無數日本和全球企業都想和這股「大谷效應」沾上邊……。 A: 這也增加了道奇在各種商業談判中的籌碼吧。 B: 第三、媒體報導更將道奇的品牌形象推升至全新的高度，使該隊價值水漲船高。 A: 真期待在2026年「世界棒球經典賽」，看到大谷和台灣隊的經典對決！ （By Eddy
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A: Major League Baseball’s 2025 World Series took place last week. The games between the Los Angeles Dodgers and Toronto Blue Jays were so exciting. B: As the highest-paid baseball player in the world, Shohei Ohtani of the Dodgers was an incandescant superstar. A: The Dodgers signed a record-breaking 10-year, US$700 million contract with Ohtani in 2023. As former ESPN reporter Joon Lee analyzed, the team quickly made back all the investment in the player’s first season. B: Wow, how is that possible? A: Firstly, tourism from Japan to Los Angeles has surged by 90 percent since Ohtani signed the deal, with the
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