## 2008年1月31日 星期四

### Britannia

50便士硬币用铜镍合金制作，直径27.3mm，重量为8克

### P45

「到葉門釣鮭魚」SALMON FISHING IN THE YEMEN

In the United Kingdom and Ireland, P45 is the reference code of a form titled Details of employee leaving work. It is issued by the employer when an employee leaves. It is a multipart form. The front section, Part 1 is given by the employer to Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs (Revenue in Ireland), who then record the pay and tax details on to the individuals taxpayer record. Part 1A is to be retained by the employee, Part 2 retained by the new employer, and Part 3 taken by the new employer and sent to their tax office. The P45 contains details of earnings and tax paid during the tax year (tax paid in previous years is detailed on the P60 for that year).

The "P" code refers to documents in the PAYE series, in the same way that self-assessment documents are prefixed "SA" (e.g. SA100 - Individual tax return) and Tax Credits paperwork is prefixed "TC" (e.g. TC600 - Tax credits application).

In the Republic of Ireland, P45 is also used as a reference to a form with the same function, as the administrative procedures in this area are similar. However, the form itself is different in design from the UK version.

Colloquially the term is used to describe somebody being fired. For instance: "After a series of defeats, the manager was eventually handed his P45."[citation needed] On June 27, 2007, the day of his resignation as Prime Minister, Tony Blair jokingly remarked during his final Prime Minister's Questions about receiving his P45:

 “ I received the following communication by urgent letter yesterday: “Details of employee leaving work: Surname Blair. First name T”— “This form is important to you. Take good care of it. P45.” „ —Tony Blair, Official Report (Hansard)

## References

### Cutty Sark

 英国著名的茶船卡蒂萨克号（Cutty Sark）曾经是往来远东和欧洲之间最快的帆船。在去年，这艘已经成为伦敦观光点的帆船在维修过程中发生大火。
 古帆船修复完毕后将在这样的一个展览馆中展出，让游人参观。

Daily Highlights Monday, June 18, 2007

Spotlight

 The Cutty Sark View Poster
When the Cutty Sark was launched in 1869, her owners had high hopes that she would be the fastest tea clipper on the sea and the first in the annual race to carry tea from China to England. The Cutty Sark never did come in first. On this date in 1872, she set sail alongside Thermopylae in a race from Shanghai to London. Although Cutty Sark was well ahead, her rudder gave way and she ended up trailing Thermopylae by seven days. Cutty Sark has been on exhibit in dry dock in Greenwich, England. On May 21, 2007, a fire whipped through the ship, causing excessive damage. The ship is undergoing extensive restoration.

Quote

"If the highest aim of a captain were to preserve his ship, he would keep it in port forever"St. Thomas Aquinas

WSJ

# 賣菜老太力抗歐盟

| | |
2008年01月30日14:48

“這件事真讓人惡心﹐”戴沃斯太太對指控發表意見﹐“有人持刀行兇﹐有人謀財害命﹐而他們把我送上法庭﹐只是因為我用磅和盎司賣東西。”

2000 年﹐英國為符合歐盟的公制計量要求﹐推出新的計量法﹐但其中有一個除外條款﹐並得到歐盟的認可。條款規定﹐商人必須使用公制重量單位﹐但可同時使用英制單 位。 戴沃斯太太在2007年底遭到指控的原因在於﹐她的所有商品上都沒有公制單位的價格﹐她的兩台秤只能稱量磅和盎司。

“我總是論磅買東西。”60歲的兼職店員索菲亞•萊維奇(Sophia Levicki)說﹐她經常光顧戴沃斯太太的菜攤。“如果東西又便宜又好﹐我就會買。”她一邊說﹐一邊稱了兩磅新鮮的紫皮茄子。

“我覺得這太不合理了。” 戴沃斯太太說。她表示﹐以碗為單位標價是一種常見做法﹐因為顧客認為這樣很值。“如果政府要告我﹐那他們就得告所有賣菜的。”

Cassell Bryan-Low

# Pound For Pound, A Veggie Peddler Takes On The EU

| | |
2008年01月30日14:48
London's East End is notorious for its criminals, from serial murderer Jack the Ripper to mobsters the Kray twins.

The latest candidate for this rogue's gallery is Janet Devers, a 63-year-old woman who runs a vegetable stall at Ridley Road market. Her alleged crime: selling goods only by the pound and the ounce.

Ms. Devers, whose stall has been in the family for 60 years, faces 13 criminal charges stemming from not selling her produce by the kilogram and the gram. She stands accused of breaking a European Union-instigated rule that countries must use metric measures to standardize trade. The rest of Europe is metric.

But Brits drink their milk and beer by the pint. On the road they rack up miles. Imperial measurement 'is what we know, how we are. Who's to tell us to change?' said Scott Lomax, a fellow vegetable-stall owner.

Ms. Devers, who pleaded not guilty in a court appearance on Friday, is being lionized for her stand in Britain's feisty tabloids. If convicted, she could be fined as much as $130,000. 'It's disgusting,' said Ms. Devers of the charges. 'We have knifings. We have killings,' she said. 'And they're taking me to court because I'm selling in pounds and ounces.' And, equally illegally, in bowls. Ten of the counts against her relate to purveying produce, such as hot Scotch-bonnet peppers, by the bowl. The United Kingdom wrote an exemption into its measurements law to meet the EU metric requirement in 2000, as Brussels allowed. It stated that traders must use metric weights, but they could use imperial measures as well. The problem is that Ms. Devers allegedly didn't have metric prices on all of her produce when she was charged late last year, and two of her scales only measured in pounds and ounces. The British imperial system dates back at least to medieval times. Notable holdouts still using it are Britain and the U.S. It doesn't help that the metric system was created over 200 years ago across the Channel in France, England's ancient archrival. Aversion to the metric system is one of many signs of the U.K.'s lingering reluctance to integrate with its continental neighbors. Britain shuns the euro in favor of the pound sterling, drives on the left-hand side of the road and has a tradition of 'euroskeptic' politicians who thrill some sections of the public by bashing the Continent. One recent overcast Thursday afternoon at Ridley Road market in Hackney, a low-income district in East London, shoppers from Turkish, Asian and Afro-Caribbean communities browsed the stalls. Shouts from traders touting deals like '50p a basket of mangoes' mingled with reggae music blasting from a stall that sells posters and T-shirts. Insulated from the chilly January day in a faux-fur- trimmed hat, Ms. Devers chatted up customers from behind her covered stall piled with eggplant, ginger, green beans (GBP 1 a pound for the beans). Though her signs currently carry prices in pounds as well as the equivalent in kilograms, she said her customers prefer pounds -- and sometimes complain when she uses kilos that she's trying to cheat them. 'I always shop in pounds,' said Sophia Levicki, a 60-year-old part-time shop clerk and a regular at Ms. Devers's stall. 'If it's good enough and cheap enough, I'll buy it,' she added, as she asked for two pounds of shiny, purple-skinned eggplant. Nearby stall owner Mr. Lomax added prices in kilos as well as pounds to his signs after warnings from local authorities in recent years. 'The customers don't understand kilos,' he said. Like many stall owners he uses metric scales, which he got after the EU metric directive was introduced into U.K. law in 2000. Ms. Devers's trouble with the law began one Thursday this September, when two representatives from the local government council, accompanied by two policemen, came up to her stall and seized her imperial scales. They told Ms. Devers she was using illegal scales and that she wasn't allowed to weigh in pounds and ounces, she said. 'I was furious,' said Ms. Devers, who asked the police officers if the council was allowed to do that, to which they responded that it was. Around Christmas, a 67-page letter landed in her mail. It outlined 13 criminal charges against her, including one charge of improper pricing of goods and two charges related to using imperial scales. She also faces 10 counts related to selling by the bowl. 'I think it's so ridiculous,' she said, noting that pricing per bowl is common practice because customers perceive it as good value. 'If they're going to do me for bowls, they have to do the whole country.' Alan Laing, an official with the local authority that is prosecuting Ms. Devers, said that 'making sure traders comply with weights-and-measures legislation is also part of the job.' Ms. Devers wouldn't be the first to be pounded down by the metric law. Four market-stall owners -- including her brother -- lost an appeal to the High Court in 2002 for not using metric measurements. They received conditional discharge -- which means no further action is taken as long as they don't break the law again within a specific period of time. A group campaigning to pardon them is helping coordinate financing for Ms. Devers's case and calls them 'metric martyrs.' It's about 'who governs Britain,' says campaigner Neil Herron, from Sunderland, England. With the help of her brother, Ms. Devers found lawyers willing to take on the case for a nominal fee. Their planned legal strategy is to argue various technicalities such as a loophole for imperial scales that predate the law. They plan to lean on what they see as a recent softening in Brussels. After pressure from U.K. companies as well as others that trade with Britain and the U.S., the European parliament recently adopted legislation that would let the U.K. continue to use imperial alongside metric measures indefinitely, instead of phasing it out by next year. The measure is awaiting European Council approval. Her legal team may also call customers as witnesses to say that they like paying pounds for pounds, one of the lawyers involved said. Ms. Devers faces fines of up to$10,000 per charge, or a total of about $130,000. 'It would ruin me,' said Ms. Devers, who declined to detail her earnings. She says she canceled a planned trip to New York with her twin sister, because having a criminal record could make entering the U.S. difficult. On Friday afternoon, Ms. Devers appeared in Thames Magistrates Court in East London. She pleaded not guilty. Her barrister, Nicholas Bowen, mocked the nature of her alleged crimes. 'If somebody sells a punnet of strawberries at Wimbledon is that a criminal offense?' he asked. A punnet, as all Britons know, is roughly the equivalent of a couple of handfuls -- or about half a liter. Ms. Devers and her legal team won a victory of sorts. The magistrate granted their request that the case be tried by a jury. Jurors, with perhaps some shoppers among them, will likely be sympathetic, Mr. Herron says. Ms. Devers smiled as she left the courthouse to go back to her stall. The scales of justice sit, she said, 'in the hands of the people.' Cassell Bryan-Low ## 2008年1月29日 星期二 ### Framing Production:Technology, Culture, and Change in the British Bicycle Industry March 2008 6 x 9, 238 pp., 30 illus.$18.00/£11.95 (PAPER)

ISBN-10:
0-262-68170-6
ISBN-13:
978-0-262-68170-4

Framing Production
Technology, Culture, and Change in the British Bicycle Industry

The production of bicycles in Britain and the United States recently suffered severe setbacks. The renowned American Schwinn brand was downgraded to the mass market by its new owners following bankruptcy, and Britain's Raleigh came close to closure because of high debts and poor returns, saved only by a last-minute management buyout. In both cases, market share and credibility were lost to newer, more innovative firms, as well as to a recentering of the global bicycle industry in the Far East.

This book reflects on such changes by setting them within a sociological and historical context. It focuses on the British bicycle industry in the interwar years and in the 1980s and the 1990s--periods characterized by modernization of production and of industrial organization, by changing relations among players in the industry, by new developments in labor relations, and by changes in interactions between markets and product design. In particular, it traces the fortunes of the Raleigh Cycle Company from its beginnings as an innovative young firm, through massive expansion of its products and markets and the assimilation of many of its competitors, into further innovation amid market contraction and management inertia, and finally into a phase of global restructuring that has transformed and reduced its role within the industry.

The book explores the complex ways in which product design, production methods, industrial organization, and the cultures of cycling have interacted to create a succession of sociotechnical frames for the bicycle. At the same time, on an activist level, the book promotes a participatory politics of bicycle technology and a less car-centered view of personal transportation.

Paul Rosen is Research Fellow in the Science and Technology Studies Unit at the University of York.

Framing Production
Technology, Culture, and Change in the British Bicycle Industry

 Acknowledgments ix 1 Technology, Culture, and the Politics of the Bicycle Sample Chapter - Download PDF (148 KB) 1 2 The Emergence of the British Bicycle Industry 29 3 Modernization, Competition, and Collaboration in the Sociotechnical Frameof British Mass Cycle Production 41 4 Working for Raleigh: Sociotechnical Change and the Relations of Production 75 5 The Destabilizing of Mass Production: Technological, Organizational, andIndustrial Change 95 6 The Global Flexibilization of the Bicycle 119 Up the Velorution: Toward a Sociotechnical Frame of the Sustainable Bicycle 155 Epilogue 181 Appendix A : Interviewees 185 Appendix B: Documentary Sources 187 Appendix C: Significant Events and Artifacts in the History of the Raleigh Cycle Company 193 Notes 197 Bibliography 207 Index

# Housing costs dominate family expenditure

This article was first published on guardian.co.uk on Monday January 28 2008. It was last updated at 16:10 on January 28 2008.

Spending on food and drink as a proportion of total expenditure has dropped. Photograph: David Sillitoe

The proportion of a UK household's budget that goes on keeping a roof over the family's head has more than doubled in the past 50 years, according to official figures released today.

Housing costs such as mortgage interest and rent now take up the biggest slice of the weekly budget - an average 19% compared with 9% in 1957, according to the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

Meanwhile, spending on food and non-alcoholic drinks has dropped sharply from 33% of a weekly household budget in 1957 to just 15% last year.

The figures are published in the ONS's latest Family Expenditure Survey, which has now been running for 50 years, and are based on a survey of nearly 7,000 households in 2006.

They show that the average family spent £456 a week, with £143 going on housing and related costs, including council tax and home improvements.

The average total weekly household expenditure was highest among households of three or more adults and children, and amounted to £700 a week.

At the other end of the scale, one-person retired households mainly dependent on the state pension reported spending £138 a week.

After housing costs, transport took up the lion's share of the average household budget, clocking in at £62 a week.

This included £23.40 on the purchase of vehicles, £28.60 on operational costs such as petrol, repairs and servicing, and £10 on public transport such as rail, tube and bus fares.

Spending on recreation and culture, which includes purchasing books and TVs, as well as package holidays, came next at £58 a week.

Food and non-alcoholic drink purchases contributed £47 to weekly household expenditure, of which £12.50 went on meat, £3.60 on fresh vegetables and £2.90 on fresh fruit.

## Greater disposable income

Comparing the figures for 2006 with those for 1957, it seems greater disposable income has pushed up spending on leisure goods and services, with the average outlay on them rising from 9% to 19%.

"Expenditure on leisure remained fairly stable until 1977. From 1977 until 2006 the expenditure has increased at a greater rate than in the 20 years between 1957 and 1977," said the report.

A fall in the number of smokers has meant a big drop off in spending on tobacco, from 6% of weekly spending in 1957 to just 1% now, but spending on alcoholic drinks has remained unchanged at 3% of the average weekly household budget.

Spending on motoring and travel costs has risen from 8% to 16% over the same period.

Clothing and footwear take a smaller cut of the average household budget, down from 10% in 1957 to just 5%.

The report also includes lists of the top 50 spending categories in 1957 and 2006, although these are not directly comparable because of a change in the assessment criteria.

In 1957 the top 50 included 20 items of food and drink including fresh milk, beef and veal, mutton and lamb, and sugar.

In the latest report, the top 50 items as a proportion of household spending include just 10 food and drink items, among them takeaway and snack food.

Fresh vegetables did not appear at all in 1957, but are now ranked in 34th place.

## 2008年1月28日 星期一

### 伦敦的叫卖声

 伦敦的叫卖声 作者：（英）阿秋生 等著，刘炳善 译 出版社：上海译文出版社 出版时间：2006-12-1

本书选录了十八、十九和二十世纪的一些英国随笔 名篇。所以这样选录，乃是因为除了培根那些偏重哲理的短论以外，十八世纪以后的英国随笔才发展圆熟，留下大批脍炙人口的作品，足资欣赏、观摩、比较。 下面试以阿狄生、兰姆和弗吉尼亚•伍尔夫_二位作家为例，说明英国随笔在十八、十九和二十世纪的不同特色。

旁观者自述（阿狄生）
旁观者俱乐部（斯梯尔）
《旁观者报》的宗旨（阿狄生）
伦敦的叫卖声（阿狄生）
某君日记（阿狄生）

关于一把扫帚的沉思
育婴刍议
《婢仆须知》总则

黑衣人
西敏大寺记游

梦幻中的小孩子
读书漫谈
退休者
兰姆自传
兰姆书简四通

论平易的文体
论青年的不朽之感
伊利亚

睡眠小议
德·昆西
知识的文学与力量的文学

艾里斯·贝尔与阿克顿贝尔生平纪略

《文艺复兴史研究》的引言和结语

理想中的黄金国
乞丐
为闲人一辩

随笔作家的艺术

葬礼

玛丽·沃尔斯顿克拉夫特
多萝西华兹华斯
“我是克里斯蒂娜罗塞蒂”
一个人应该怎样读书？

## 2008年1月27日 星期日

### ‘barring-out’

A widespread custom, up to the 19th century, was the ‘barring-out’ of the schoolteacher by his pupils. On a day sanctioned by custom (but varying from place to place), the pupils contrived to bar the door with the teacher outside, often with his connivance, and refused to let him in until he agreed to their terms, which were usually for a half-holiday, or something similar. By the 19th century the custom was relatively controlled, but in previous generations had been much rougher. On at least one occasion, in Scotland in 1595, a magistrate who was helping the teacher gain access to the school was shot dead by one of the pupils. Not surprisingly, local authorities waged a continual war against such activities and gradually succeeded in taming and, eventually, eliminating the custom.

"The practice of barring-out, was a savage license practised in many schools to the end of
the last century, by which the boys, when the periodical vacation drew near, growing petulant
at the approach of liberty, some days before the time of regular recess, took possession of the
school, of which they barred the doors, and bade their master defiance from the windows. It is
not easy to suppose that on such occasions the master would do more than laugh; yet, if
tradition may be credited, he often struggled hard to force or surprise the garrison( ━━ n., vt. 守備隊（を置く）, 要塞地（として守備する）.).
The master, when Pigot was a school-boy, was barred-out at Lichfield, and the whole operation, as he said, was planned and conducted by Addison."

Life of Addison, 1672–1719 by Samuel Johnson

## 2008年1月26日 星期六

### [The Cries of London]

Milk is generally sold in a note above E-la, and in sounds so exceedingly shrill, that it often sets our teeth on edge.

E-la是蝦米音？

hc

《劉炳善譯文集》：《倫敦的叫賣聲》、《伊利亞隨筆》、《書和畫像》......

Cries of London 《倫敦叫賣聲》 17世紀初的作曲家把倫敦商販沿街叫賣的傳統曲調改編而成的輪唱曲。收在《不列顛音樂叢書》中。 這是今天上課的時候老師無意中帶過的，

SACD

# The Cries Of London: Hillier / Theatre Of Voices Fretwork

Morning

Joseph Addison, from The Spectator, No. 251

The Spectator, a popular series of periodical essays that appeared daily (except Sundays) in 1711–12 and 1714, was written by Addison and Richard Steele. In addition to influential social and literary criticism, it popularized current philosophical and scientific notions, set standards of taste and manners, and appealed to city readers (and readers who followed city fashions) by providing vivid descriptions of the life of the town.

[The Cries of London]

There is nothing which more astonishes a Foreigner and frights a Country Squire, than the Cries of London. My good Friend, Sir Roger, often declares that he cannot get them out of his Head, or go to sleep for them the first Week that he is in Town. On the contrary, Will. Honeycomb calls them the Ramage de la Ville, and prefers them to the Sounds of Larks and Nightingales, with all the Musick of the Fields and Woods. * * *

The Cries of London may be divided into Vocal and Instrumental. As for the latter, they are at present under a very great Disorder. A Freeman of London has the Privilege of disturbing a whole Street for an hour together, with the twancking of a Brass Kettle or a Frying-Pan. The Watchman's Thump >> note 2 at Midnight startles us in our Beds, as much as the breaking in of a Thief. * * *

Vocal Cries are of a much larger Extent, and indeed so full of Incongruities and Barbarisms, that we appear a distracted City, to Foreigners, who do not comprehend the Meaning of such Enormous Outcries. Milk is generally sold in a Note above Elah, and in Sounds so exceedingly shrill, that it often sets our Teeth an edge. The Chimney Sweeper is confined to no certain pitch; he sometimes utters himself in the deepest Base, and sometimes in the lowest Note of the Gamut. The same Observation might be made on the Retailers of Small-cole, not to mention broken Glasses or Brick-dust. * * *

Some of these last-mentioned Musicians are so very loud in the Sale of these trifling Manufactures, that an honest Splenetick Gentleman of my Acquaintance bargained with one of them never to come into the Street where he lived; But what was the effect of this Contract? why, the whole Tribe of Cardmatch-makers which frequent that Quarter, passed by his Door the very next Day, in hopes of being bought off after the same manner.

Images of the Outcast : The Urban Poor in the Cries of London-US-
ISBN:9780813531526 (Paper cover book)
Shesgreen, Sean /Publisher:Rutgers Univ Pr Published 2002/

# Britain Seeks Its Essence, and Finds Punch Lines

Pool photo by Tom Pilston

Queen Elizabeth II after the ceremonial opening session of Parliament in November 2006.

Published: January 26, 2008

LONDON — It was a lofty idea: formulate a British “statement of values” defining what it means to be British, much the way a document like the Declaration of Independence sets out the ideals that help explain what it means to be American.

Adrian Dennis/Agence France-Presse — Getty Images

To be seen at the races at Ascot is undeniably a British tradition. Summing up national values, though, appears debatable.

Because of the peculiarities of its long history, Britain has in modern times never felt the need for such a statement. But in an era of decentralized government and citizens who tend to define themselves less by their similarities than by differences of region, ethnicity or religion, the government felt that the time was ripe for one.

The proposal, part of a package of British-pride-bolstering measures announced by Prime Minister Gordon Brown’s new government over the summer, raised a host of tricky questions. What does it mean to be British? How do you express it in a country that believes self-promotion to be embarrassing? And how do you deal with a defining trait of the people you are trying to define: their habit of making fun of worthy government proposals?

Detractors spread the rumor that the government was looking not for a considered statement, but for a snappy, pithy “liberté, égalité, fraternité”-style slogan that it could plaster across government buildings in a kind of branding exercise.

Nor did it help when The Times of London cynically sponsored a British motto-writing contest for its readers.

### “Dipso, Fatso, Bingo, Asbo, Tesco”

The readers’ suggestions included “Dipso, Fatso, Bingo, Asbo, Tesco” (Asbo stands for “anti-social behavior order,” a law-enforcement tool, while Tesco is a ubiquitous supermarket chain); “Once Mighty Empire, Slightly Used”; “At Least We’re Not French”; and “We Apologize for the Inconvenience.” The winner, favored by 20.9 percent of the readers, was “No Motto Please, We’re British.”

“The point I was making is, this idea of a statement of Britishness; I cannot think of anything less British than that,” said 25-year-old David Bishop, author of the winning motto.

In the House of Lords, there was a surreal debate on the nonmotto, even after Lord Hunt of Kings Heath, an official in the Ministry of Justice, said flatly that there were no plans to have one.

“I do not think I will go down that route,” he said. “But I will say that the motto of Birmingham City Football Club is ‘Keep right on ’til the end of the road.’ ”

The Earl of Mar and Kellie then suggested that the British could use the Scottish motto “Nemo me impune lacessit,” which he translated from the Latin as “Do not sit on a thistle.” (Actually, it means “no one attacks me with impunity.”) Lord Faulkner of Worcester offered “Play up, and play the game,” a line from a Victorian-era poem comparing conduct on the battlefield to conduct on the cricket field. And Earl Ferrers said that if it proved too difficult to come up with a British-wide motto, the House of Lords could perhaps use its own: “Questions and answers ought to be short.”

Part of the trouble with the whole exercise is that Britain never really began as a country, but rather “just evolved endlessly through time,” said Vernon Bogdanor, a professor of government at Oxford.

“In the past, Britain was something that just happened,” he said. “You didn’t have to think about it. No one’s ever sat down and thought about what it means to be British.”

On the contrary, said Michael Wills, the Ministry of Justice official in charge of the statement-of-values exercise. “It’s absolute historical nonsense,” he said in an interview. “There’s been an intense preoccupation with what it means to be British from the 17th century onwards.” After a long period of post-imperial transition, economic decline and loss of heart in the second half of the last century, he said, Britain has a new confidence and robustness and is ready to say so.

“People are proud of being British,” he said. “When you ask people, ‘What does it mean to be British?’ they want to talk about it.”

The government’s plans also include coming up with a definition of British citizenship; formulating a “bill of rights and duties” for citizens; and even considering writing down a constitution (it is currently unwritten, an accrual of precedents). There is also talk of a “British Day,” similar to Independence Day; a “museum of Britishness”; and a revisiting of the national anthem, “God Save the Queen,” one of whose later verses advocates annihilating the “rebellious Scots,” which is not very nice to the Scottish.

The Scottish, who were empowered by the Labor Party to set up their own Parliament and take more control of their destiny, are feeling particularly un-British these days and in any case have never really liked the song.

“It’s surprising that it’s taken them 250 years to realize that it’s not inclusive,” Brian Adam, a member of the Scottish Parliament, said last month. “I personally am more happy with ‘Flower of Scotland.’ ”

The historian Tristram Hunt said that such grand gestures would not sit easily with many Britons, anyway. “I personally think it’s based on a misreading of the British character,” he said. “Part of the attraction of Britain is the space it gives people to pursue their own agendas and identities.”

In advocating the proposals, Prime Minister Brown, a Scot himself, has been influenced by the United States, with its melting-pot philosophy and strong sense of national identity, and by the ideas of Sir Jonathan Sacks, the chief rabbi of Britain. Sir Jonathan believes that while Britain was once like a country house — everyone was a guest, and everyone felt a sense of belonging — now people are treating it like a hotel, checking in and out and hunting for bargains. Instead, he has said, it should be a community that people build together.

As for the statement of values, Mr. Wills of the Justice Ministry said that the government would soon hold “an extensive and intensive” period of consultation with regular people on what being British means to them. After that, it will convene a “citizens’ summit” of 500 to 1,000 people who will deliberate on the matter. The final decision on the statement will be made by Parliament.

But the government has its work cut out for it, if the sort-of debate in the House of Lords is anything to go by.

After Lord Hunt’s assurances that the government had no plans for a motto and his colleagues’ insistence on discussing one anyway, Lord Conwy had a thought. Why, he asked, could they not just use the French “Dieu et mon droit,” which means “God and my right?”

Lord Hunt replied: “As the noble lord will know, that represents the divine right of kings. While it is of course a well-known phrase, one would need to reflect on whether that would be entirely relevant to a motto that we are not going to have.”

# Statement regarding Peter Hain MP donations

On 29 November 2007, Peter Hain MP informed the Electoral Commission that he had not fully reported to the Commission donations he had received for his Labour Party deputy leadership campaign.

Mr Hain has since met with the Commission and provided additional information about donations he received. The Electoral Commission has undertaken a thorough review of this information.

Following discussions with the Metropolitan Police Service and the Crown Prosecution Service, the Electoral Commission has now referred matters to the Metropolitan Police for them to consider whether an investigation should commence.

### refer sb to sth (DIRECT)

 海因未能當選工黨副主席

BBC記者格雷姆利說，工黨政府一向引以為榮，自己曾經引入保証政黨籌資透明度的專門法律。

## 2008年1月25日 星期五

.....2007)十二月的倫敦，滿城爭說這個英國最美的車站 ── 聖潘克斯車站(St Pancras Station)她是連接英格蘭與歐洲大陸的歐洲之星新起點，經過七年整修、花費八億英鎊(約五百億元台幣)，自去年十一月中旬正式重新啟用。穿過英吉利 海峽，倫敦到巴黎的行車時間一舉縮短為兩小時十五分鐘，到布魯塞爾，更僅需一小時五十分。

「我們要確保所做的每一件事，都以大眾交通運輸為基礎，」「設計倫敦」(Design for London 倫敦設計總成 Design for London to support the delivery of well-designed
projects across London ) 總監畢夏(Peter Bishop)指出，倫敦將從現有的七百多萬人，在二十年之間再成長一百萬人。迫切要解決的，就是交通、居住、生活品質和就業議題。

「設計倫敦」是倫敦市長李文斯頓(Ken Livingstone)一年前特別設立的單位，目的就是要集中倫敦所有都市設計的資源，廣納意見、運籌協調。而「設計倫敦」機構的成立，一方面暗示著面對城市競爭的大局面，即使強壯如倫敦，也不敢不加緊腳步。另一方面，也見證了英國人注重計劃、強調全盤配套，與整體美觀的前瞻做法。

「未來我們還將花上二、 三十年時間，把市中心零碎的溼地、綠地綴連起來，再加上市中心外圍的環城綠帶(green belt)，」為了精密計算人均公共綠地、人均公園面積等自然地景分布，畢夏遞出一本專門探討東倫敦綠地網絡的手冊，上面滿是該如何補救某些地區綠地缺乏 的方法。

「騎自行車上班」的風潮彷彿像春風般吹過了倫敦的大街小巷，就這麼流行了起來。即使是在接近零下的溫度，也還是會有一身勁裝的自行車騎士，飛快騎過，在街 頭引起觀光客的側目。另一方面，為了解決交通和空氣污染問題，從二○○三年起，倫敦市中心的部份區域開始在周一至周五徵收「塞車稅」 (congestion fee)。凡是在規定時間內開車入城的，每天得交八英鎊(約五百元台幣)。

HC案: London Accord翻譯成「倫敦協定」有可能錯誤 因為這是一協助投資人決策之研究項目 或許可解釋為「倫敦永續諧和投資咨詢」....
The London Accord is a co-operative research initiative that brings together the latest thinking of leading investment banks to provide a comprehensive overview of the state of the art in bringing the effects of climate change into rigorous financial decision making analysis.

「過去的經驗讓我們認知，人、經濟、基礎建設和國際行銷，是倫敦城市發展與更新的四大主軸，」倫敦發展(London Development Agency 前文為"部" )策略與政策總監麥德沃(Tony Medawar)指出。

「所以我們現在對每個更新區的想像，一定會先考量勞動力是否能夠同步升級，以人力技能的訓練為優先，」倫敦發展署都市更新資深經理侯考芙 (Rosie Holcroft)認為，城市轉型不單是公共空間、交通建設等硬體規劃，本地勞動力是否能夠跟上產業結構的變化，是另一個根本的挑戰。

「我們從來不覺得倫敦是一個『大城市』，但競爭者很多，都在準備擊敗我們，」蒙哥莫利謹慎地說。

【天下雜誌389期 新世界之都 倫敦】

### Which? 與 一杯咖啡的熱量

2007先從今天BBC的一則翻譯新聞說起

"

《泰晤士報》引述英國情報部門的監督機構通信截聽委員會的報告指出，在過去一年，英國的特務組織和其他司法部門等共發出了45萬次申請，要求截查境內人士的電子郵件、電話和郵件等。

通信截聽委員會負責人托馬斯指出，從2005年到2006年間，有關的截查發生了4000起錯誤，這一數字是高得不能接受的。

《獨立報》報道，英國各大銀行將公布破紀錄的業績，在去年非法收取47億英鎊款項，感謝顧客們的反抗，現在是銀行清還款項的時候。

《獨立報》頭版標題呼籲銀行客戶取回屬於自己的金錢。

Wikipedia中只有英文的介紹

Which? is a subscription-only magazine and website run by Which? Ltd (formerly known as the Consumers' Association, which is still the official name of the charity). Based in the United Kingdom, it engages in advocacy campaigns on various consumer protection issues and aims to promote informed consumer choice in the purchase of goods and services, by testing products, highlighting inferior products or services, and raising awareness of consumer rights. It maintains its independence by not accepting advertising or freebies; everything bought for testing is paid for at full price. Which? is funded entirely by its subscribers and has no shareholders.

Which? carries out systematic testing of consumer products and financial services, the results of which are published in reports in the magazine. The Which? 'Best Buy' label is well-known and respected by industry and consumers. Tests are carried out on consumer items like electrical goods, cars, and computers, as well as health and financial services, and supermarkets. Testing highlights issues such as reliability and value-for-money.

The magazine also raises awareness of trading it believes goes against the interests of consumers. It offers advice on consumers' legal rights and reports on legal cases where it has fought for members' rights. In the May, 2003 issue, for example, the back page featured a couple who won compensation from their credit card firm after purchasing a poor holiday. Another case featured was a life assurance company which had not maintained customer records properly and was forced to pay compensation. Which? also communicates regularly with the OFT and recently brought a 'supercomplaint' against private dentists in the UK. However, Which? has been criticised for its use of junk mail prize draws, similar to Reader's Digest, to gain additional subscribers. It is moving away from this area[citation needed].

Which? Ltd produces several other specialist publications apart from the main Which? magazine. These include Holiday Which?, Computing Which? and Gardening Which. It also publishes several books including the annual Good Food Guide and Giving and Inheriting.

### Thomas Rowlandson

Rowlandson, Thomas (1756/7-1827). Artist. Social commentator rather than caricaturist, Rowlandson's eye for life's comedies led him to favour types rather than individuals. A Royal Academy student, his prodigious output of pen-drawings, water-colours, and prints were so full of gusto that he has been seen as a personification of his age. A friend of Gillray, he worked for the publisher Ackermann, creating ‘Dr Syntax’, but technique and vision suffered after 1800 in consequence of his productivity.

He studied at the Royal Academy and in Paris, but his passion for gambling prevented him from producing much until c.1782, when he was obliged to earn a living. As a humorous caricaturist and critical commentator of the social scene, Rowlandson quickly gained celebrity. His drawing Vauxhall Gardens (1784) was a great success, as was his series of drawings The Comforts of Bath that was reproduced in 1789. This was followed by the famous Tour of Dr. Syntax (series in 3 vol., 1812–21), Dance of Death (1814–16), and Dance of Life (1822)—all with text by William Combe. Rowlandson also illustrated Smollett, Goldsmith, Sterne, and Swift. Most of his drawings were first done in ink with a reed pen and given a delicate wash of color. The fluidity of his line is likened to the French rococo, but the spirited humor of his work, sometimes almost coarse, is in the English style. His work is represented in the British Museum, the Victoria and Albert Museum, and the Metropolitan Museum.

Thomas Rowlandson (July 14, 1756April 22, 1827) was an English caricaturist.

He was born in Old Jewry, in the City of London, the son of a tradesman or city merchant. On leaving school he became a student at the Royal Academy. At the age of sixteen, he lived and studied for a time in Paris, and he later made frequent tours to the Continent, enriching his portfolios with numerous jottings of life and character. In 1775 he exhibited a drawing of Delilah visiting Samson in Prison, and in the following years he was represented by various portraits and landscapes. He was spoken of as a promising student; and had he continued his early application he would have made his mark as a painter. But by the death of his aunt, a French lady, he inherited £7,000, plunged into the dissipations of the town and was known to sit at the gaming-table for thirty-six hours at a stretch.

Discomforts of an Epicure; self-portrait by Thomas Rowlandson from 1787 to prove that he could aim his caricatures at himself

In time poverty overtook him; and the friendship and example of James Gillray and Henry William Bunbury seem to have suggested caricature as a means of filling an empty purse. His drawing of Vauxhall, shown in the Royal Academy exhibition of 1784, had been engraved by Pollard, and the print was a success. Rowlandson was largely employed by Rudolph Ackermann, the art publisher, who in 1809--issued in his Poetical Magazine The Schoolmaster’s Tour--a series of plates with illustrative verses by Dr. William Combe. They were the most popular of the artist’s works. Again engraved by Rowlandson himself in 1812, and issued under the title of the Tour of Dr Syntax in Search of the Picturesque, they had attained a fifth edition by 1813, and were followed in 1820 by Dr Syntax in Search of Consolation, and in 1821 by the Third Tour of Dr Syntax in Search of a Wife.

He also produced a body of erotic prints and woodcuts, many of which would be considered pornographic today.

The same collaboration of designer, author and publisher appeared in the English Dance of Death, issued in 1814-16, one of the most admirable of Rowlandson’s series, and in the Dance of Life, 1822. Rowlandson also illustrated Smollett, Goldsmith and Sterne, and his designs will be found in The Spirit of the Public Journals (1825), The English Spy (1825), and The Humourist (1831). He died in London, after a prolonged illness, on 22 April 1827.

Rowlandson’s designs were usually done in outline with the reed-pen, and delicately washed with colour. They were then etched by the artist on the copper, and afterwards aquatinted --usually by a professional engraver, the impressions being finally coloured by hand. As a designer he was characterized by the utmost facility and ease of draughtsmanship, and the quality of his art suffered from this haste and over-production. He dealt less frequently with politics than his fierce contemporary, Gillray, but commonly touching, in a rather gentle spirit, the various aspects and incidents of social life. His most artistic work is to be found among the more careful drawings of his earlier period; but even among the exaggerated caricature of his later time we find hints that this master of the humorous might have attained to the beautiful had he so willed.

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

His work included a personification of the United Kingdom named John Bull who was developed from about 1790 in conjunction with other British satirical artists such as Gillray and George Cruikshank.

### Thomas Rowlandson (1756-1827)

A distinctive style of satire used in caricature drawings emerged in England during the reign of George III. The freedom from censorship and the variety of publishers catering to people of different political and cultural views fueled this art. These etchings reproduced as single prints had the advantage of quick production and a price many could afford. The subject matter was often political in nature but many other subjects were addressed. Rowlandson's works addressed many subjects: fashion, theater, country life, religion, nautical themes, travel, and medicine and illness. The Dittrick Medical History Center has eight original prints of Rowlandson's caricature works, and a set of reproductions depicting medical themes. Doctors are usually portrayed as quacks, drunken sots, body snatchers, and money grubbers.

Thomas Rowlandson: The Last Gasp: Toadstools Mistaken for Mushrooms. Pubished by Thomas Tegg ca.1800
Thomas Rowlandson: Medical Dispatch or Doctor Double Dose Killing Two Birds With One Stone. Published by Thomas Tegg ca.1800

Rowlandson worked for many publishers throughout the years. He was employed at Rudolf Akermann's 'Repository of Arts' in 1798. Akermann sold designs for coaches, paintings, drawings, and materials for amatur artists, most of his clientele were well-heeled middle class. Ackermann was also a Loyalist. Rowlandson's work for him reflected those political and cultural values. During this same period Rowlandson was commissioned by Thomas Tegg to produce works to be sold at Tegg's 'Apollo Library' that catered to the lower sector of the booming caricature business. Colored etchings sold for one shilling, half the usual price. These works were often bawdy in nature and carelessly executed. Rowlandson also did work for Samuel Fores who was one of the top three dealers of high quality caricatures, the following prints are from a set of prints titled the Comforts of Bath (1798) published by Samuel Fores.

Rowlandson often produced works for opposing points of view at the same time, like the pro-Pitt and pro-Fox etchings, or the Kings first attack of insanity. Collectors of etchings often bought from opposing viewpoints. So when we see doctors depicted very negatively in Rowlandsons prints, this may or may not have been his personal point of view. The medical profession was poorly regulated at this time, permitting quacks to erode public confidence in the profession. Rowlandson died in 1827, and by that time reform of the profession of medicine had begun. The old Poorhouse was being replaced by the newer type of teaching hospital, and modern ideas of public health were evolving. Caricaturists of the day raised the consciousness of the public, and perhaps helped fuel reform in many areas of society.

Sources:

Donald, Diana, The Age of Caricature: Satirical Prints in the Reign of George III, New Haven: Yale University Press, 1996

Grego, Joseph, Rowladson the Caricaturist: A Sketch of his life, Times, and Contemporaries 2 Vols New York: J.W. Bouton, 1880

(born July 1756, London, Eng. — died April 22, 1827, London) British caricaturist. The son of a merchant, he studied at the Royal Academy and in Paris. After establishing a portrait studio, he began to draw caricatures to supplement his income, and found such success with them that caricature became his major occupation. The comic images he created lampooned familiar social types of his day — the antiquarian, the blowsy barmaid, the hack writer. He also illustrated editions of the novels of Tobias Smollett, Oliver Goldsmith, and Laurence Sterne.

## 2008年1月22日 星期二

### 酗酒

bbc

“應提高酒稅以阻止青年人酗酒”
2006年10月27日 | 英國動態
"尼古丁減慢酒精吸收或助長酗酒"
2006年07月25日 | 科技健康

2006年05月27日 | 科技健康

2006年01月13日 | 時事專題

2005年08月15日 | 科技健康

2005年01月04日 | 科技健康
"酒精對女性大腦的損害較大"
2005年05月16日 | 科技健康
“女強人更愛借酒消愁”
2004年03月01日 | 中文網主頁

A large glass of red wine contains about three units of alcohol

In Britain a unit of alcohol is defined as 10 millilitres (or approximately 8 grams) of ethanol (ethyl alcohol). It is used as a basis for guidelines on consumption of alcoholic beverages; the number of units contained in a typical drink is publicised and marked on bottles.

[hide]

## Formula

The number of units of alcohol in a drink can be determined by multiplying the volume of the drink (in millilitres) by its percentage ABV, and dividing by 1000 (or litres × % abv).

Thus a pint (568ml) of beer at 4% ABV contains

$\frac{568 \times 4}{1000} = 2.3\mbox{ units}$

In the metric system there is 1 unit per percentage point of ABV in 1 litre of a drink; e.g., 37.5 units in a litre of a typical whisky with 37.5 ABV.

## Quantities

It is often misleadingly stated that a unit is supplied by a small glass of wine, half a pint of beer, or a single measure of spirits.[1] Such statements are misleading because they do not reflect the large differences in strengths and measures of wines, beers and spirits.[2] [3]

• Beers
• A half pint (284ml) of ordinary strength (3.5-4% ABV) beer contains about one unit. However, some beers (especially lager) are stronger. In pubs, beers generally range from 4% to 5.5% ABV with continental lagers starting at around 5% ABV. A pint of such lager (568ml at 5.2% for example) is almost 3 units of alcohol, rather than the often-quoted value of 2 units per pint.
• A 500ml can/bottle of standard lager (5%) generally contains around 2.5 units.
• 'Super-strength' or strong pale lager may contain as much as two units per half pint.
• Wines
• A small glass (125ml) of 8% abv wine contains one unit, or 8 g (0.25 oz) of alcohol. However, British pubs and restaurants usually supply larger quantities (medium: 175 ml or large: 250 ml), and few wines are as weak as 8%; 12% is more usual. A typical pub measure (medium glass - 175 ml) of white wine (at 12%) contains around 2 units (actually 2.1) and a large glass (250 ml) contains 3.0 units. Red wine, which usually has a higher alcohol content (up to 16%), contains for an average 14% abv. an alcohol content of 3.5 units for a large (250 ml glass), approximately one-sixth higher than a typical white wine. Just two bottles of 14% abv. red wine a week will supply the maximum intake of alcohol for a man recommended by UK health guidelines.
• A 750ml standard bottle of 12% wine contains 9 units. Many wines (especially New World red wines) may contain 14% ABV or more, which is 10.5 units of alcohol per bottle.
• Fortified wines, etc.
• A small glass (50ml) of sherry, fortified wine, or cream liqueur (approx. 20% abv) contains about one unit.
• spirits
• Most spirits sold in the UK have 40% ABV or slightly less. A single pub measure (about 25ml) of such a spirit contains one unit. However, a larger single measure of 35 ml is now often sold, resulting in the consumption of 1.4 units of alcohol.

## Limits

Since 1995 the UK government has advised that regular consumption of between three and four units a day for men and between two and three units a day for women would not pose significant health risks, but that consistently drinking four or more units a day (men) or three or more units a day (women) is not advisable. Previously (from 1992 till 1995) the advice was that men should drink no more than 21 units per week, and women no more than 14. This was changed because a government study showed that many people were in effect "saving" up their units and "using" them at the end of the week,a phenomenon referred to as binge drinking. The difference between sexes is given due to the (typically) lower weight and water-to-body-mass-ratio of women.

It was claimed in October 2007 that these limits had been "plucked out of the air" and have no scientific basis.[4]

An international study (Kanis, 2005) of almost 6,000 men and 11,000 women found that persons who reported that they drank more than 2 units of alcohol a day had an increased risk of fractures compared to non-drinkers. For example, those who drank over 3 units a day had nearly twice the risk of a hip fracture.[5]