◎魏國金

Up to half of all the food produced worldwide ends up going to waste due to poor harvesting, storage and transport methods as well as irresponsible retailer and consumer behavior, a report said.

全球生產的食物中多達半數最後流於浪費,因為不良的收成、儲藏與運輸方式,以及零售商、消費者不負責任的行為,一份報告指出。

The world produces about four billion metric tons of food a year but 1.2 to 2 billion metric tons is not eaten, the study by the London-based Institution of Mechanical Engineers said.

全球一年生產約40億公噸的食物,但12至20億公噸沒有被食用,總部設於倫敦的機械工程師學會研究指出。

In developed countries, efficient farming methods, transport and storage mean that most of the wastage occurs through retail and customer behavior.

在已開發國家,有效率的農作方式、運輸與儲存,意味著多數的浪費發生在零售與消費行為上。

Retailers produce 1.6 million metric tons of food waste a year because they reject crops of edible fruit and vegetables because they do not meet exacting size and appearance criteria, the report by the engineering society said.

零售商一年造成160萬公噸的食物浪費,因為他們拒絕大小與外觀不符合嚴格標準的可食用蔬果作物,該工程師學會的報告指出。

Of the food which does reach supermarket shelves, 30-50 percent of what is bought in developed countries is thrown away by customers, often due to poor understanding of "best before" and "use by" dates.

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◎國際新聞中心

Scientists say they can find no convincing evidence to show that taking vitamin D supplements will fend off a cold. The 161 people who took daily vitamin D for 18 months caught as many colds as the 161 who took fake pills.

科學家說,他們未能發現具說服力的證據,顯示吃維他命補充品可對抗感冒。161名每天吃維他命D連吃18個月的人,與吃安慰劑的161人感冒機率相同。

The study was reported in the Journal of the American Medical Association.

這項研究發表在「美國醫學協會期刊」。

But a leading UK cold expert said vitamin D was useful. Prof Ronald Eccles, of the Common Cold Centre at Cardiff University, said it can give the immune system a much-needed boost during winter when vitamin D reserves may be low.

但英國知名感冒專家說,維他命D很有用。卡地夫大學感冒中心主任愛爾柯斯教授說,維他命D能在冬季給予免疫系統非常需要的幫助。

He said echinacea supplements may also help ward off coughs and colds, but added: "Supplements do not work for everybody because people’s immune systems are different. It’s not a case of one size fits all."

他說,紫錐菊補充劑或許也能對抗咳嗽與感冒,但「補充劑不是對每個人都有效,因為免疫系統因人而異,並非一體適用。」

新聞辭典

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An Iowa couple who won a $202 million Powerball jackpot in September is donating $3 million to their son’s high school for a new football stadium - but the gift comes with a catch.

一對在去年9月中了威力球頭彩2.02億美元獎金的愛荷華州夫妻,捐出300萬美元給兒子就讀的高中蓋一座新的美式足球場——但此一餽贈另有隱情。

 

The stadium visitor’s locker room must be painted pink.

這座體育場的客隊更衣室,必須漆成粉紅色。

 

The Bondurant-Farrar school district accepted the $3 million donation from Brian and Mary Lohse on Monday, The Des Moines Register reported.

(愛州首府)第蒙紀錄報報導,邦杜蘭特-法勒學區週一接受布萊恩與瑪莉‧羅西300萬美元捐款。

 

The couple from the Des Moines suburb of Bondurant requested only that the new stadium be completed before the fall 2014 football season - their oldest son’s senior year - and that the visiting team’s locker room be painted pink.

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◎陳成良

Apple Inc’s iPhone is losing some of its lustre among Asia’s well-heeled consumers in Singapore and Hong Kong, a victim of changing mobile habits and its own runaway success.

蘋果公司的iPhone在新加坡和香港富裕顧客群中的受寵程度下降,因手機用戶喜好發生變化,且受制於先前的大獲成功。

Driven by a combination of iPhone fatigue, a desire to be different and a plethora of competing devices, users are turning to other brands, notably those from Samsung Electronics Co Ltd, eating into Apple’s market share.

對iPhone感到疲乏、渴望與眾不同,再加上可選擇的手機琳琅滿目,用戶紛紛改買其他品牌的手機,尤其是三星手機,侵蝕了蘋果的市占率。

In Singapore, Apple’s products were so dominant in 2010 that more devices here ran its iOS operating system per capita than anywhere else in the world.

在新加坡,2010年時蘋果產品獨領風騷,使用蘋果iOS作業系統的裝置數人均比例,比全球任何一個國家都高。

But StatCounter , which measures traffic collected across a network of 3 million websites, calculates that Apple’s share of mobile devices in Singapore - iPad and iPhone - declined sharply last year. From a peak of 72 percent in January 2012, its share fell to 50 percent this month, while Android devices now account for 43 percent of the market, up from 20 percent in the same month last year.

不過, StatCounter根據300萬個網站的網頁瀏覽量分析,計算出蘋果iPad和iPhone在新加坡行動裝置的市占率去年大幅下降,本月從2012年1月高峰期的72%降至50%,目前使用安卓系統的裝置占43%,高於上年同期的20%。

In Hong Kong, devices running Apple’s iOS now account for about 30 percent of the total, down from about 45 percent a year ago. Android accounts for nearly two-thirds.(Reuters)

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Russians mock Kremlin decision on Depardieu passport

俄羅斯人嘲笑克宮決定發給德巴狄厄護照

◎俞智敏

Russians reacted with amusement, disbelief and a heavy dose of irony to the news that the Kremlin has granted citizenship to French actor Gerard Depardieu to solve his tax woes.

俄羅斯民眾聽說克里姆林宮已給予法國影星傑哈德巴狄厄俄國公民資格,以解決其稅務窘境的消息後,紛紛報以好笑、不可置信及連串冷嘲熱諷的反應。

In a letter broadcast on Russian television, the former Oscar nominee declared his love for President Vladimir Putin and called Russia a "great democracy."

在一封由俄羅斯電視台轉播的公開信中,這位曾獲奧斯卡獎提名的演員宣稱他熱愛俄羅斯總統普廷,並稱俄羅斯為「偉大的民主國家。」

"He is impressed by our democracy -- he has completely lost his marbles," wrote one Facebook user, Vladimir Sokolov.

「他被我們的民主制度所感動—他已經完全頭殼壞去了,」一名臉書用戶索可洛夫寫道。

Far-left politician Eduard Limonov suggested Depardieu could reprise his famous film role of French revolutionary Georges Danton and risk detention by riot police at a regular unsanctioned rally against Putin.

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