2007年VOA标准英语-Thousands of Secrets revealed!

By Yi Suli
Washington, D.C.
10 July 2007
 

Nearly everyone has secrets, something that, for whatever reason, they have never shared with anyone. An artist in Washington, DC has created a project that allows people to anonymously¹ share their secrets and learn the secrets of others. It is called PostSecret and allows people to reveal anything as long as it is true and has never been shared with anyone before. For producer Yi Suli, VOA's Elaine Lu has the story.

Would you share a secret with a stranger?  Many share their secrets with one man.   Frank Warren has collected more than 100,000 secrets from people all over the world.

Warren reads several anonymously sent in secrets.  "All my life I want to look like Liz Taylor. Now Liz Taylor starts to look like me,” is one.  "Guess what mom? My nipples are pierced and you are the only one who doesn't know," is another.

Warren started PostSecret as a community art project in November 2004. At first, Warren gave out postage-paid postcards on the street inviting² people to send their secrets to him. Soon, people were sending homemade postcards on their own.

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The address for PostSecret is 13345 Cooper Ridge Road, Germantown, Maryland 20874-3454

"These days I get between 100 and 200 postcards every day," says Warren.

Of those, 20 are published on the PostSecret website every week.

"What I am trying to do is pick those cards and those secrets that have a special ring of authenticity⁴ to me. And also select secrets that cover the full spectrum⁵ of human emotions. So every week I try to select one secret that is funny, or sexual, or joyful⁶, or tragic⁷, or philosophical⁸, or confusing."

Secrets sent to PostSecret

Cindy King likes the idea of sharing secrets anonymously.  "I think if you tell your secret to PostSecret or through other postcard type ways, it still gets to stay as a secret because no one knows that it is you,” says King. “But if you went and told your mom, then they could tell everyone else. They would know exactly what your secret is. And that's you without a doubt."

"One of the biggest surprises for me is how beautiful the postcards are,” says Warren. “As you can see, people use photographs, pictures, diagrams to further express their secret."

Warren's secrets have led to several books and even inspired a hit song.

1 anonymously   

ad.用匿名的方式

参考例句：

• The manuscripts were submitted anonymously. 原稿是匿名送交的。
• Methods A self-administered questionnaire was used to survey 536 teachers anonymously. 方法采用自编“中小学教师职业压力问卷”对536名中小学教师进行无记名调查。

2 inviting   

adj.诱人的，引人注目的

参考例句：

• An inviting smell of coffee wafted into the room.一股诱人的咖啡香味飘进了房间。
• The kitchen smelled warm and inviting and blessedly familiar.这间厨房的味道温暖诱人，使人感到亲切温馨。

3 ridge   

n.山脊；鼻梁；分水岭

参考例句：

• We clambered up the hillside to the ridge above.我们沿着山坡费力地爬上了山脊。
• The infantry were advancing to attack the ridge.步兵部队正在向前挺进攻打山脊。

4 authenticity   

n.真实性

参考例句：

• There has been some debate over the authenticity of his will. 对于他的遗嘱的真实性一直有争论。
• The museum is seeking an expert opinion on the authenticity of the painting. 博物馆在请专家鉴定那幅画的真伪。

5 spectrum   

n.谱，光谱，频谱；范围，幅度，系列

参考例句：

• This is a kind of atomic spectrum.这是一种原子光谱。
• We have known much of the constitution of the solar spectrum.关于太阳光谱的构成，我们已了解不少。

6 joyful   

adj.欢乐的，令人欢欣的

参考例句：

• She was joyful of her good result of the scientific experiments.她为自己的科学实验取得好成果而高兴。
• They were singing and dancing to celebrate this joyful occasion.他们唱着、跳着庆祝这令人欢乐的时刻。

7 tragic   

adj.悲剧的，悲剧性的，悲惨的

参考例句：

• The effect of the pollution on the beaches is absolutely tragic.污染海滩后果可悲。
• Charles was a man doomed to tragic issues.查理是个注定不得善终的人。

8 philosophical   

adj.哲学家的，哲学上的，达观的

参考例句：

• The teacher couldn't answer the philosophical problem.老师不能解答这个哲学问题。
• She is very philosophical about her bad luck.她对自己的不幸看得很开。