2022年经济学人 “酒店办公”会流行起来吗？（2）

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Yet problems soon became apparent.

然而，问题很快就显现出来了。

The first is price.

首先是价格。

An overnight stay at Birch sets you—or, if you are lucky like Bartleby, your employer—back 160 pounds ($192).

在桦木酒店住一晚就要花掉你160英镑(192美元)，但如果你像巴托比一样幸运的话，这笔钱就由你的老板出。

The Shangri-La charges 350 pounds for a standard room.

香格里拉酒店标间的价格则是350英镑。

Cities have plenty of cheaper “third spaces” these days; a co-working space costs a fraction of that.

如今，各个城市有很多更便宜的“第三空间”；联合办公空间的价格只是上述价格的零头。

The second problem is: how productive can workers be with all the distractions¹ that are designed to make work not feel like work?

第二个问题是：在所有旨在让办公变得不像办公的干扰下，员工的工作效率能有多高？

The spectacular view from the Shard² is less conducive³ to dreaming up a sales pitch (or a column) than it is to daydreaming⁴.

比起帮助顾客构思推销口号(或专栏)，从碎片大厦看到的壮观景色反而更有利于白日做梦。

At Birch, boardgames occupy every horizontal surface, ready to draw out the procrastinator⁵ in you.

桦木酒店的每一个台面上都占据着棋盘游戏，随时准备诱发你的拖延症。

And once you are done stretching, that sourdough-baking class is a recipe to keep putting work on the back burner.

一旦你做完拉伸运动，面包烘焙课就会接着让你搁置工作。

Third, if you resist the temptation to temporise and get down to business, you may as well be at home or the office.

第三个问题是，如果你能抵抗住拖延的诱惑，开始认真工作，你还不如居家或在办公室里办公。

The kibbutz-like camaraderie⁶ which Birch (and other places like it cropping up everywhere) try so hard to evoke⁷ is, ironically, the very thing you miss by staying away from your office mates.

讽刺的是，桦木酒店(以及其他随处可见的类似场所)如此努力地想要唤起的集体农场式的友情，正是你远离办公室同事所避开的东西。

While you are updating that spreadsheet or answering emails, luxury hotels’ creature comforts scarcely register.

当你在更新电子表格或回复电子邮件时，几乎不会注意到豪华酒店的物质享受。

As with most material indulgences, a sense of vacuity⁸ descends⁹ once the novelty of the marble floors and stacks of fluffy¹⁰ towels wears off.

就像大多数物质享受一样，一旦大理石地板和成堆的蓬松毛巾带来的新鲜感消失，一种空虚感就会袭来。

The millennials and Gen-Zs meandering¹¹ around Birch suggest that demand for its hip¹² offerings exists.

桦木酒店周围有千禧一代和Z世代在闲逛，这表明对其新潮服务的需求是存在的。

And hoteliers are wise to work their assets in new ways as they cope with changes to their industry: business travel is, after all, unlikely to return to pre-pandemic patterns for a while, if ever.

酒店经营者在应对行业变化时，明智的做法是以新的方式利用自己的资产：毕竟商务旅行一段时间内不太可能回到疫情前的模式。

Just do not expect white-collar types to flock to hotels en masse for a hard day’s work.

只是别指望白领们会为了一天的辛苦工作而蜂拥至酒店。

Most of the Shangri-La’s daytime residents seemed to be couples seeking privacy, not executives keen to inspire and invigorate their pitches.

香格里拉的大多数日间住客似乎都是寻求隐私的情侣，而不是热衷于在构思推销口号时受到启发并精神焕发的高管。

As for Bartleby, you will find her at The Economist’s London head office or, failing that, her kitchen table.

至于巴托比，你会在《经济学人》伦敦总部找到她，如果找不到，去她家的厨房餐桌那里一定能找到。

1 distractions   

n.使人分心的事[人]( distraction的名词复数 )；娱乐，消遣；心烦意乱；精神错乱

参考例句：

• I find it hard to work at home because there are too many distractions. 我发觉在家里工作很难，因为使人分心的事太多。
• There are too many distractions here to work properly. 这里叫人分心的事太多，使人无法好好工作。 来自《简明英汉词典》

2 shard   

n.（陶瓷器、瓦等的）破片，碎片

参考例句：

• Eyewitnesses spoke of rocks and shards of glass flying in the air.目击者称空中石块和玻璃碎片四溅。
• That's the same stuff we found in the shard.那与我们发现的碎片在材质上一样。

3 conducive   

adj.有益的，有助的

参考例句：

• This is a more conducive atmosphere for studying.这样的氛围更有利于学习。
• Exercise is conducive to good health.体育锻炼有助于增强体质。

4 daydreaming   

v.想入非非，空想( daydream的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• Stop daydreaming and be realistic. 别空想了，还是从实际出发吧。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• Bill was sitting and daydreaming so his mother told him to come down to earth and to do his homework. 比尔坐着空想， 他母亲要他面对现实，去做课外作业。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

5 procrastinator   

n. 拖延者, 拖拉者, 因循者

参考例句：

• General Peckem's communications about cleanliness and procrastination made Major Major feel like a filthy procrastinator. 佩克姆将军谈到清洁和拖延的那些简报，使梅杰少校感到自己象一个邋遢的、作风拖拉的家伙。
• This is also a great help if you are a procrastinator. 如果你是一个拖拉的人，这样会对你很有帮助。

6 camaraderie   

n.同志之爱，友情

参考例句：

• The camaraderie among fellow employees made the tedious work just bearable.同事之间的情谊使枯燥乏味的工作变得还能忍受。
• Some bosses are formal and have occasional interactions,while others prefer continual camaraderie.有些老板很刻板，偶尔才和下属互动一下；有些则喜欢和下属打成一片。

7 evoke   

vt.唤起，引起，使人想起

参考例句：

• These images are likely to evoke a strong response in the viewer.这些图像可能会在观众中产生强烈反响。
• Her only resource was the sympathy she could evoke.她以凭借的唯一力量就是她能从人们心底里激起的同情。

8 vacuity   

n.(想象力等)贫乏，无聊，空白

参考例句：

• Bertha thought it disconcerted him by rendering evident even to himself the vacuity of his mind. 伯莎认为这对他不利，这种情况甚至清楚地向他自己证明了他心灵的空虚。
• Temperature and vacuity rising can enhance osmotic flux visibly. 升高温度和降低膜下游压力可明显提高膜的渗透通量。

9 descends   

v.下来( descend的第三人称单数 )；下去；下降；下斜

参考例句：

• This festival descends from a religious rite. 这个节日起源于宗教仪式。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The path descends steeply to the village. 小路陡直而下直到村子。 来自《简明英汉词典》

10 fluffy   

adj.有绒毛的，空洞的

参考例句：

• Newly hatched chicks are like fluffy balls.刚孵出的小鸡像绒毛球。
• The steamed bread is very fluffy.馒头很暄。

11 meandering   

蜿蜒的河流，漫步，聊天

参考例句：

• The village seemed deserted except for small boys and a meandering donkey. 整个村子的人都像是逃光了，只留下了几个小男孩和一头正在游游荡荡的小毛驴。 来自教父部分
• We often took a walk along the meandering river after supper. 晚饭后我们常沿着那条弯弯曲曲的小河散步。

12 hip   

n.臀部，髋；屋脊

参考例句：

• The thigh bone is connected to the hip bone.股骨连着髋骨。
• The new coats blouse gracefully above the hip line.新外套在臀围线上优美地打着褶皱。