经济学人333:乡村宽带 埋入地下

 　　Rural broadband

　　乡村宽带

　　Going underground

　　埋入地下

　　Frustrated² country-dwellers build their own internet connections

　　无奈的乡下居民自行建立网络连接

　　Hold on—I'll try you on Skype

　　别挂，我再试试Skype

　　FUSION³ splicing⁴ is a technique network engineers use to string together optical fibres. It is not a skill that Christine Conder, a 60-year-old farmer's wife, ever expected to learn. But with borrowed tools and a little training most people can pick up the basics. “It's only like knitting,” she says.

　　熔接是网络工程师用来把光纤接在一起的一门技术。年届60的农家妇克里斯汀娜·康德从没想到自己将会学习这门技术。但只要借来了工具，稍微培训一下，大多数人都能掌握基本要领。康德说：“这就像编织活儿一样。”

　　For years Mrs Conder and her neighbours in the Lune Valley, in rural Lancashire, waited for telecoms firms to upgrade their sluggish⁵ internet connections. In 2011 they decided⁶ to do it for themselves. Their organisation⁷, called Broadband for the Rural North (B4RN), has sold shares worth more than ￡1m ($1.7m) to buy ducts and cables for volunteers to install. Because younger residents are commonly busy with jobs and families, local pensioners⁸ have done much of the digging, says Mrs Conder: “Some are getting sixpacks for the first time in years.”

　　康德夫人和她同住在兰开夏郡乡村半月谷的邻居们等待电信公司来升级他们龟速的网络连接已经多年了。2011年他们决心自己动手。他们组建的名为北方农村宽带（B4RN）组织已卖出价值超过一百万英镑（一百七十万美元）的股票来购买管道和电缆来供志愿者们安装。康德夫人说，由于年轻的居民通常都忙于工作和家庭，所以当地退休者承担了大部分挖掘的工作。“有些人因此都头一次练出了腹肌。”

　　乡村宽带.jpg

　　Enthusiasts⁹ say that locally owned networks such as B4RN—also known as “altnets”—could eventually connect many thousands of rural communities. Going it alone looks particularly tempting¹⁰ to the unlucky 5-10% of Britons who are probably too far-flung to benefit from the more than ￡1 billion in subsidies¹¹ that the government is giving BT, the former state telecoms monopoly, to extend its high-speed network outside Britain's towns. And whereas BT has focused on cranking up the speeds it delivers through existing copper¹² telephone wires, most altnets are plugging houses directly into optical cables that can provide some of the fastest connections in the world.

　　热衷者说像B4RN这样的地方所有网络（也被称为altnets，自选网络）最终将会连接成千上万的农村社区。自己动手对于不走运的5—10%的英国人来说很有吸引力。政府为前国家电信垄断公司BT在英国城镇外延伸高速网络提供超过1亿英镑的补助，而这部分英国人住得也许太过偏远以至于不能从中受益。鉴于BT工作重心在于在已有的网线上提速，大多数的altnets都直接将宽带牵入房屋，为他们提供世界上最快速的网络连接之一。

　　To grow beyond a mere¹³ curiosity, though, Britain's altnets need more help. B4RN is a case in point. In two years its volunteers have laid 200km of cable, and wired up around 400 homes, without any taxpayer¹⁴ money. But to shore up the network they must now dig their cable under the River Lune. Until they raise more cash to dig a tunnel—perhaps as much as ￡50,000—that project is stalled.

　　然而要继续发展证明不是一时兴起，英国altnets需要更多帮助。B4RN就是一个恰当的例子。没花纳税人一分钱，志愿者在两年内铺设了200千米的电缆，约400家已联通。但想要支撑整个网络。他们现在还需要在半月河河床下铺设电缆。在他们筹备到足够的钱——也许多达5万英镑——来挖隧道之前，这个工程将停滞不前。

　　Politicians are supportive, in principle. Last year the coalition¹⁵ government found ￡20m to help local initiatives solve just such problems. A lot of it went unspent. That is because many of the local authorities responsible for overseeing the rural roll-out have yet to confirm for certain which farms and villages will be left out of BT's state-subsidised work. Until they do, even miserly grants are suspended, for fear that some spots will end up with a double dose of public funds.

　　政治家们在原则上是支持的。去年联合政府设立了两千万英镑的基金来提高地方积极性以解决类似的问题。大量基金都还没有被使用，因为很多监督农村转出的地方机构还没完全确定哪些农场和乡村不在BT政府补贴工作网内。在这之前，因恐怕一些地区将会得到双份公共资金，即便是小额支出也被暂停了。

　　MPs are livid. In early April politicians on the public accounts committee urged the government to make sure coverage¹⁶ plans are available for every postcode. BT has argued that it is still surveying some areas, and that publishing the most comprehensive forecasts would reveal its methods to rivals. Critics say its vagueness is designed to frustrate¹ initiatives that threaten its incumbency¹⁷. Lately it has grown more forthcoming. But local authorities are also hesitant to let on who will and who will not be included in the roll-out, at least while the details may change.

　　国会议员很愤怒。四月初，政府账目委员会的政客们呼吁政府确认联网计划能覆盖到每个地区。BT争辩道他们还在调查某些区域，公布最全面的预测会把他们的方法泄露给竞争对手。评论家说BT的含糊其辞是设计好用来打击地方积极性的，因为它们威胁到了BT的工作任务。最近预测变得更到位了，但地方机构也在犹豫要不要透露每个地区是否包含在转出范围内，毕竟有些细节变化会影响整个工作。

　　Mrs Conder says that B4RN will cross the river “no matter what it takes”. But thieves who made off with ￡14,000 of kit¹⁸ in December pinched a little of its confidence. Local bigwigs have not always helped—rail bosses have refused B4RN permission to lay fibre over a bridge they own.

　　康德夫人说B4RN“无论如何”都将过河。但12月份一伙携价值14,000英镑设备潜逃的窃贼使这个保证受到了些许打击。地方权贵也并不一定提供帮助——铁老大们拒绝许可B4RN铺设的电缆跨越他们拥有的一架桥。

　　Her own connection, at least, will soon be up and running. Broadband firms would charge many thousands of pounds to bring ultra-fast internet to the farm; B4RN customers pay ￡150 to plug in. It has cost her much more in time and energy.

　　至少她自己的网络连接很快就要开始正常使用了。宽带公司将收取成千上万英镑将极速网络引入农场来。而B4RN的顾客只需付费150英镑来联网。她花费更多的是时间和精力。

　　1.expect to 期望

　　例句:You cannot expect to like all the people you will work with.

　　不要指望你会喜欢所有和你共事的人。

　　2.pick up 捡起；拾起

　　例句:The economy remains¹⁹ deep in recession with few signs of a pick-up.

　　经济仍深陷衰退之中，几乎没有好转的迹象。

　　3.wait for 等待；等候

　　例句:Do not wait for good things to happen to you. You need to walk towards happiness.

　　不要等待好事降临，你要向幸福进发。

　　4.decide to 决定

　　例句:A dentist may decide to extract the tooth to prevent recurrent trouble.

　　牙医可能会决定拔掉那颗牙，以免反复发作。

1 frustrate   

v.使失望；使沮丧；使厌烦

参考例句：

• But this didn't frustrate Einstein.He was content to go as far as he could.但这并没有使爱因斯坦灰心，他对能够更深入地研究而感到满意。
• They made their preparations to frustrate the conspiracy.他们作好准备挫败这个阴谋。

2 frustrated   

adj.挫败的，失意的，泄气的v.使不成功( frustrate的过去式和过去分词 )；挫败；使受挫折；令人沮丧

参考例句：

• It's very easy to get frustrated in this job. 这个工作很容易令人懊恼。
• The bad weather frustrated all our hopes of going out. 恶劣的天气破坏了我们出行的愿望。 来自《简明英汉词典》

3 fusion   

n.溶化；熔解；熔化状态，熔和；熔接

参考例句：

• Brass is formed by the fusion of copper and zinc. 黄铜是通过铜和锌的熔合而成的。
• This alloy is formed by the fusion of two types of metal.这种合金是用两种金属熔合而成的。

4 splicing   

n.编接（绳）；插接；捻接；叠接v.绞接( splice的现在分词 )；捻接（两段绳子）；胶接；粘接（胶片、磁带等）

参考例句：

• An ultra_low _loss splicing without conventional power monitoring could be achieved. 焊接最低损耗在非常规能源运作下将可能做到。 来自互联网
• Film, tissue backing. For splicing, holding in shoe and general purpose use. 具有薄膜、棉纸基材，适用于铭版、皮革及一般性双面贴合。 来自互联网

5 sluggish   

adj.懒惰的，迟钝的，无精打采的

参考例句：

• This humid heat makes you feel rather sluggish.这种湿热的天气使人感到懒洋洋的。
• Circulation is much more sluggish in the feet than in the hands.脚部的循环比手部的循环缓慢得多。

6 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。

7 organisation   

n.组织，安排，团体，有机休

参考例句：

• The method of his organisation work is worth commending.他的组织工作的方法值得称道。
• His application for membership of the organisation was rejected.他想要加入该组织的申请遭到了拒绝。

8 pensioners   

n.领取退休、养老金或抚恤金的人( pensioner的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• He intends to redistribute income from the middle class to poorer paid employees and pensioners. 他意图把中产阶级到低薪雇员和退休人员的收入做重新分配。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• I am myself one of the pensioners upon the fund left by our noble benefactor. 我自己就是一个我们的高贵的施主遗留基金的养老金领取者。 来自辞典例句

9 enthusiasts   

n.热心人，热衷者( enthusiast的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• A group of enthusiasts have undertaken the reconstruction of a steam locomotive. 一群火车迷已担负起重造蒸汽机车的任务。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Now a group of enthusiasts are going to have the plane restored. 一群热心人计划修复这架飞机。 来自新概念英语第二册

10 tempting   

a.诱人的, 吸引人的

参考例句：

• It is tempting to idealize the past. 人都爱把过去的日子说得那么美好。
• It was a tempting offer. 这是个诱人的提议。

11 subsidies   

n.补贴，津贴，补助金( subsidy的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• European agriculture ministers failed to break the deadlock over farm subsidies. 欧洲各国农业部长在农业补贴问题上未能打破僵局。
• Agricultural subsidies absorb about half the EU's income. 农业补贴占去了欧盟收入的大约一半。 来自《简明英汉词典》

12 copper   

n.铜；铜币；铜器；adj.铜(制)的；(紫)铜色的

参考例句：

• The students are asked to prove the purity of copper.要求学生们检验铜的纯度。
• Copper is a good medium for the conduction of heat and electricity.铜是热和电的良导体。

13 mere   

adj.纯粹的；仅仅，只不过

参考例句：

• That is a mere repetition of what you said before.那不过是重复了你以前讲的话。
• It's a mere waste of time waiting any longer.再等下去纯粹是浪费时间。

14 taxpayer   

n.纳税人

参考例句：

• The new scheme will run off with a lot of the taxpayer's money.这项新计划将用去纳税人许多钱。
• The taxpayer are unfavourably disposed towards the recent tax increase.纳税者对最近的增加税收十分反感。

15 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

16 coverage   

n.报导，保险范围，保险额，范围，覆盖

参考例句：

• There's little coverage of foreign news in the newspaper.报纸上几乎没有国外新闻报道。
• This is an insurance policy with extensive coverage.这是一项承保范围广泛的保险。

17 incumbency   

n.职责，义务

参考例句：

• Every incumbency employee has his year-end bonus.所有的在职员工都可以领到年终奖金。
• Administrator ethic includes administrative incumbency and administrative conscience.行政人员伦理包括行政义务和行政良知。

18 kit   

n.用具包，成套工具；随身携带物

参考例句：

• The kit consisted of about twenty cosmetic items.整套工具包括大约20种化妆用品。
• The captain wants to inspect your kit.船长想检查你的行装。

19 remains   

n.剩余物，残留物；遗体，遗迹

参考例句：

• He ate the remains of food hungrily.他狼吞虎咽地吃剩余的食物。
• The remains of the meal were fed to the dog.残羹剩饭喂狗了。