Famous American poet Robert Frost once said, “Poetry is what gets lost in translation.” Although it is not impossible to translate poetry, Xu Yuanchong, a well-known Chinese translator, has striven to convey the beauty of ancient Chinese poetry throughout his life.
His teacher Qian Zhongshu commented on his poetry translation, “You are dancing while chained by rhyme (押韵) and rhythm, but the dance shows amazing freedom and beauty, which is quite extraordinary.”
Xu has just turned 100 years old. On April 1, China Translation and Publishing House published a series of commemorative (纪念的) books about his life and career to pay tribute to this centenarian.
Since 1978, Xu has published more than 100 translated novels, anthologies (选集) and plays in Chinese, English and French, reaching potentially millions of readers at home and abroad. Most notably, he translated Chinese poems into rhymed verses in both English and French. He is also the first Asian winner of the “Aurora Borealis Prize” for Outstanding Translation of Fiction Literature.
Xu is known to be very fastidious in his work. He has dedicated his life to“[translating] beautifully”. For him, English is a “scientific” language that demands accuracy, while Chinese is an “artistic” language that includes a wider range of content. Following this principle, Xu not only keeps faithfulness in sense but beauty in sensibility in his translation.
Through Xu’s translations, time-honored Chinese wisdom has made an impact on Western societies and the world at large.
For instance, when former US president Barack Obama tried to begin a controversial healthcare reform during his presidency, some senators (参议员) were opposed at first. But after reading the poem titled Fishing in Snow (《江雪》) translated by Xu, one senator was so impressed with the fisherman’s independent, non-conformist (不墨守成规的) thinking that he chose to part with the party line to support Obama, noted NewsChina.
Having made such great achievements, the 100-year-old remains diligent. He lives alone in an old house near Peking University. In his simple room, decorated with Chinese traditional furniture, he maintains a routine. Every day he translates roughly 1,000 words, working till 3 to 4 am, sleeping about 3 hours and getting up at 6 am to continue.
“Translation is a means of communicating with the writer’s soul. A sudden flicker (闪现) of [a] good word or [a] good line thrills every pore (毛孔) and every inch of my skin,” Xu told NewsChina.
1. What does the article tell us about Xu Yuanchong?| A．He’s the first winner of The Aurora Borealis Prize. |
| B．He has translated about 100 Chinese literary works into English. |
| C．He is widely known for his translated rhymed verse. |
| D．He has mastered at least three foreign languages. |
| A．Particular. | B．Satisfied. | C．Inventive. | D．Productive. |
| A．To show Xu’s popularity. |
| B．To illustrate Xu’s impact. |
| C．To introduce his reform. |
| D．To stress Xu’s wisdom. |
| A．Modest and insightful. |
| B．Considerate and cautious. |
| C．Creative and open-minded. |
| D．Dedicated and passionate. |
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【推荐1】Fun Indoor Activities for Kids to Do At Home
Indoor days can be just as fun as the get-up-and-go ones, with a little planning and preparation. These are some of the most fun indoor activities for kids.
DIY Your Own Masterpieces
Time to bring out all your markers, glue, paint, paper places, and whatever other odds and ends you have around the house and let the kids go to town. When you’re done, take the works of art and display them on shelves.
Start an Indoor Garden
You don’t even need empty planters to get the garden growing — an old egg carton will do the trick at first. To make it more of a STEM activity, give kids journals so they can take notes on what they’ve planted and keep track of their garden’s progress. Bonus: Plant basil seeds or other herbs, and you’ll have delicious ingredients for a cooking project.
Break out the Board Games
It’s the oldest idea in the book, but if you really want some screen-free family time, old-fashioned board games still do the trick. Get your competitive spirit up and get ready to play.
Indoor Obstacle Course
This activity is great for young ones working on their coordination (协调) or older ones who might need to get some energy out. Cardboard boxes can transform into tunnels to crawl through. You can tie strings around furniture and pretend that they’re laser beams that kids have to step over or crawl under. See who in the family has the fastest time getting through the obstacles.
Stock up on the materials now — though you might have what you need lying around the house already — and you’ll never fear an indoor day again.
1. Which activity involves most physical exercise?| A．DIY Your Own Masterpieces. | B．Start an Indoor Garden. |
| C．Break out the Board Games. | D．Indoor Obstacle Course. |
| A．They give kids some screen time. |
| B．They provide ingredients for cooking. |
| C．They are inspired by ideas from an old book. |
| D．They are convenient to prepare. |
| A．Teachers. | B．Children. | C．Parents. | D．Designers. |
【推荐2】Research has already suggested that opening a book may help improve brain function, reduce stress, and even make us more empathetic. Now, a team led by Joanna Sikora of the Australian National University is looking into the benefits of growing up around a book-filled environment.
The study assessed data from 160,000 adults from 31 countries. Participants filled out surveys which measure proficiency in three categories: literacy, numeracy and information communication technology. Respondents ranging in age from 25 to 65 were asked to estimate how many books were in their house when they were 16.
The surveys showed that the average number of books in participants’ childhood homes was 115, but that number varied widely from country to country. The average library size in Norway was 212 books, for instance; in Turkey, it was 27. However, it seemed that more books in the home were linked to higher proficiency in the areas tested by the survey. The effects were most marked when it came to literacy. Growing up with few books in the home resulted in below-average literacy levels. Being surrounded by 80 books boosted the levels to average, and literacy continued to improve until home libraries reached about 350 books, at which point the literacy rates leveled off.
The new study shows us new implications. For instance, an adult who grew up with hardly any books in their home but went on to obtain a university degree being in comparison to an adult who grew up with a large home library, but only had nine years of schooling, the study found that both of their literacy levels were roughly average. “So, literacy-wise, bookish adolescence makes up for a good deal of educational advantage,” the study authors write.
Further research is needed to determine precisely why exposure to books in childhood cultivates valuable skills later in life, but the study offers further evidence to suggest that reading has a powerful effect on the mind. And the home library size might be important because, as the researchers note, “Children follow parents who read.”
1. What does Joanna Sikora’s research focus on about books?| A．Their medical benefits. | B．Their academic advantages. |
| C．Their lasting influence. | D．Their mathematical meanings. |
| A．Profession. | B．Talent. | C．Achievement. | D．Ability. |
| A．To discuss the application of the findings. | B．To offer the evidence to support the findings. |
| C．To emphasize the value of the childhood reading. | D．To show the limitations of the adulthood reading. |
| A．It helps children follow their parents into reading. |
| B．It proves the positive effect that books have on children’s mind. |
| C．It reminds the parents that they should read as many books as they can. |
| D．It explains why children exposed to books will develop better skills in adulthood. |
【推荐3】Olympic host cities are generally considered to be equipped with advanced technology and expensive facilities. Now, people can just go there for a little Olympic-level entertainment.
Athens, Greece (1896 and 2004)
Home to the first modern Olympic games in 1896, Athens' history of the Olympic tradition dates back several thousand years. Every four years, the Olympic torch is lit at the Panathenaic Stadium in Athens before beginning its long journey to the new host city. Visitors can walk through the Olympic Velodrome in the Olympic Sports Complex and step back in time at the 50,000-seat stadium.
Barcelona, Spain(1992)
These days Barcelona is among the world's most visitable cities even without Olympic fame, but that isn't always the case. The telecommunications tower built for the games by Spanish architect Calatrava is also an iconic(图像的） device of the city's skyline, and its Olympics stadium- Montjuic Stadium is regularly used to host A-list musical performances like The Rolling Stones, Madonna, and Beyonce.
St Moritz, Switzerland(1924 and 1948)
Appropriately, the town that invented Alpine tourism has hosted the Winter Olympics twice, and continues to make use of its many sports facilities-if you can afford to get there. Stay at the Kulm Hotel for the easiest access to the Kulm Country Club, where guests can skate on the same lake used by mid-century Olympians, or test your courage on the Olympia Bob Run, one of the few places where you can ride a full-speed Olympic bobsled(双人雪橇） on a run constructed entirely of ice.
Sydney, Australia (2000)
The turn-of-the-century Sydney Summer Olympics were named the "Green Games" by the International Olympic Committee (10C) and were designed to introduce a more environmentally conscious way of hosting the event. The structure that best shows Sydney's efforts to be an example of continuing Olympic development is the ANZ Stadium.
1. Where does the host city get the Olympic torch lit?| A．At the Panathenaic Stadium. |
| B．At the Olympic Sports Complex. |
| C．At the Montjuic Stadium. |
| D．At the ANZ Stadium. |
| A．Those fond of ice-sports. |
| B．Those fond of listening to opera. |
| C．Those interested in popular music. |
| D．Those interested in Olympic history. |
| A．Their designers are from Spain. |
| B．They are thought poorly of by the IOC. |
| C．They are hosted in an environmentally friendly way. |
| D．Their design intention is proposed by Sydney authority. |
【推荐1】Very little is known of Emily Elizabeth Dickinson as the American poet always kept to herself and lived a life of solitude(隐居). She was born on 10th December 1830 at Amherst, Massachusetts to Edward and Emily Norcross Dickinson. She had an older brother, Austin, and younger sister named Lavinia.
From 1834 to 1847, Emily Dickinson studied at the Amherst Academy, an academic institution that was co-founded by her grandfather, Samuel Fowler Dickinson. In 1847, she studied at the Hadley Female Seminary (now known as Mount Holyoke College) but returned to Amherst only after a year, and began her own unique life. After returning from the Seminary, Emily withdrew from all social contact and refused to entertain guests. She chose to dress herself only in white and spent most of her time inside her room. She started writing poems at around this time. Her initial forays(最初的尝试) were conventional(有争议的) but later on, she experimented until she developed her own unique style.
The 1860s contributed greatly to Emily Dickinson’s writing style and content. The US Civil War broke out in 1861; her closest friends Samuel Bowles moved to Europe for health reasons, and Charles Wadsworth was relocated to San Francisco. In addition, she also had a persistent eye trouble. Although these years were very troublesome for Dickinson, this could also be considered as the most productive period of her life. During this time, Emily Dickinson wrote around 800 poems.
Emily Dickinson never married and died on May 15, 1886. Her poems were published by her sister, Lavinia in 1886. During her life, only seven poems were published, but Emily Dickinson has penned almost 2,000 poems.
1. What happened to Emily in 1848?| A．She studied at the Amherst Academy. |
| B．She went to the Hadley Female Seminary. |
| C．She felt lonely and returned to Amherst. |
| D．She began her life of solitude. |
| A．Emily’s writing was disturbed by the US Civil War. |
| B．Two of her closest friends deserted her in 1861. |
| C．Charles Wadsworth once lived in San Francisco. |
| D．Emily developed her own unique style. |
| A．After her death in 1886. |
| B．During the US Civil War. |
| C．During her university time. |
| D．Before her death in 1886. |
| A．Emily’s life as a poet. | B．Emily’s lifestyle. |
| C．Emily’s writing styles. | D．Emily’s poems. |
【推荐2】Could the next Ernest Hemingway or Jane Austen be a well-engineered AI software program? It’s a question becoming increasingly pressing as machine language-learning software continues to evolve.
Much of this is just nerves. Today’s AI creative writing programs are not yet at a stage of development where they pose a serious threat to Colleen Hoover or Charles Dickens. But while attention continues to focus on the possibility of a blanket takeover of human literature by AI, far less consideration has been given to the prospect of AI co-working with humans.
Earlier this month, American sci-fi writer Ken Liu, who had been awarded Hugo and Nebula to his name, joined 12 other professional authors for a writing workshop on Google’s Wordcraft. This AI tool, a language generating model, is not yet publicly available but is advertised as an AI-powered writing assistant that can, when given the right instruction from the writer, provide helpful descriptions, create lists of objects or emotional states, and even brainstorm ideas.
The writers at the workshop, however, emerged with mixed reports. “Wordcraft is too sensible. Wow!” Robin Sloan wrote. “But ‘sensible’ is another word for predictable, overused and boring. My intention here is to produce something unexpected.”
I’m unconvinced that writers awarded the Nobel Prize have much to fear from AI. Their work, and that of countless other novelists, short story writers, dramatists and poets, is too particular, too beautifully unique. Even if a model learned what they had done in the past, it would not be able to predict where their creativity might take them in the future. But for authors who write following a pattern, AI might step in, first as assistants before some day to authorship.
Production-line novels are nothing new. In the 1970s, Barbara Cartland, who wrote more than 723 books in her lifetime, many of which are romance bestsellers, would read her novels for her secretary to type up at the remarkable rate of roughly seven chapters a week. But already machine has replaced the secretary’s role. Perhaps creative writing software isn’t that far from replacing the Mrs. Cartlands of today.
1. Which aspect of AI calls for more attention?| A．Its damage to our nerves. |
| B．Its progress in literary studies. |
| C．Its cooperation with humans. |
| D．Its influence on human literature. |
| A．It generates novels automatically. |
| B．It outperforms professional writers. |
| C．Its works receive praises from the public. |
| D．Its works bear similarity to existing ones. |
| A．Increase writing speed. |
| B．Use diverse resources. |
| C．Produce creative works. |
| D．Follow the latest patterns. |
| A．Will AI Replace Human Writers? |
| B．AI Warns Mrs. Cartlands of Today |
| C．Is Writing Running into a New Era? |
| D．Word craft Lies at the Center of Debate |
【推荐3】There can be no doubt that Stephen King, New York Time’s Best-Selling author, has found success in many aspects, but it wasn’t always like this. King witnessed tragedy and horrors from the very beginning. When he was 2 years old, his father told his mom that he was going out to get cigarettes but in fact, he never came back, he had abandoned his family.
This left his mother Ruth to care for Stephen and his elder brother David on her own. Ruth was forced to move often, desperately looking for work as she was now the only provider of the family, and she had to rely on relatives most of the time. One day Stephen went out to play with friends and when he came back, he wasn’t even able to speak a single word, it seemed he was hurt mentally or something, but he still got the courage to continue forward. It turned out that one of his friends was hit by a train and died, which left an emotional scar on him.
King, later on, dropped out of school due to some serious health concerns and was told that he had to enlist (入伍) again the next fall, which demotivated him too. Although Stephen King didn’t see his childhood as something extraordinary or special, he did say that he was always fascinated by scary things.
People used to acknowledge the King family by their love of literature, in fact whenever Stephen’s mom used to go out, she didn’t hire a babysitter, for the kids used to read novels to each other so they would not get bored. Stephen King’s love of stories was developed from a very young age and he carried that tradition with his own children along with his wife Tabitha.
In 1973, Stephen King started his amazing journey of success when he published his first novel “Carrie”, which is scary. The rest followed from after that as he published many amazing books like The Shining, IT, Firestarter, and Cujo. All of these books became instant classics and got their own movie and television shows adaptions.
1. What is the main reason leading Stephen King to become a best-selling author?| A．His in-born writing talents. | B．His unfortunate childhood. |
| C．His excellent promotion skills. | D．His mom’s miserable experiences. |
| A．He was knocked down by a passing train. |
| B．He was badly criticized by a close classmate. |
| C．He was depressed by the constant moves. |
| D．He was heart-struck by the pass-away of a friend. |
| A．Discouraged. | B．Refreshed. |
| C．Embarrassed. | D．Aroused. |
| A．The family was too poor to hire a babysitter. |
| B．The children were too naughty to be looked after. |
| C．The children could actually entertain themselves. |
| D．The children were young enough to care for themselves. |
