2007/11/17
【Japan Timesをやさしい英語で 2007/11/17(945)】空一面に鳥が飛び交う
━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ■■■ 「ジャパンタイムズをやさしい英語で表現しよう！」 ■ ■■■ ２００７／１１／１７−−第９４５号 発行：３，４９５部 ■ ■■■ 英語を英語で理解する ☆★「復習機能」を取り入れたメルマガ ☆★ 毎週 月曜日〜土曜日発行 関連サイト： http://www.customer-respect.com/ 姉妹メルマガ： 「英語リーディング筋トレ―これで英字新聞も怖くない！」 http://www.customer-respect.com/mag_registration.html ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ★英語でお困りのあなたへ！★ ★３ヶ月で「英語で！」理解できるようになります！★ ┏━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━┓ ┃英語リーディング筋トレ―これで英字新聞も怖くない！┃ ┗━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━┛ ●「筋トレ5段階法」で「英語の脳」へ！ ●記憶のメカニズムを利用したメルマガ初の４段階復習！ ●気がついたら会話もできていた！ ●「英語読解」部門で現在「1位」●これはもう、やるっきゃない！ ↓↓メルマガ購読登録は今すぐクリック！↓↓ http://www.customer-respect.com/mag_registration.html -------------------------------------------------------------- 【目次】 -------------------------------------------------------------- 【１】Today's Sentence （ジャパンタイムズの表現） 【２】Easier Expression （やさしい英語で表現） 【３】編集後記 ＜空一面に鳥が飛び交う＞ 【４】クレア＆イチロー物語コーナー その３９ 【４】仲間を紹介 ＜有償・広告募集＞ このメルマガに広告を掲載したい方へ http://www.customer-respect.com/ads.html ━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━━ ■■ ■■ 「ジャパンタイムズをやさしい英語で表現しよう！」 ■■ 総合復習 第２２記事 ■■ ━━━━━ 情報源：The Japan Times Online 2007.1.14 ━━━━━ 2007年1月14日 The Japan Times Online BUSINESS GOING BEGGING （引き受け手のないビジネス） It's high time for Japan to ride the space-tourism wave （日本、宇宙観光旅行の波に乗るチャンス） By YUMI WIJERS-HASEGAWA Staff writer -------------------------------------------------------------- 【１】Japan Times' Sentences （ジャパンタイムズの表現） -------------------------------------------------------------- １★The United States and Europe are finally, albeit slowly, paving the way for space tourism to become a revolutionary source of new business -- some economists even believe it could save the stagnating world economy. ２★But many experts are very critical of governments'"monopoly of space" to date, saying that their overarching dominance has harmfully delayed it. ３★Japan, in particular, is often singled out for having top-notch technological credentials . . . but no plans to invest in this new business with astronomical potential. ４★"Space travel services for the general public have been widely recognized as the major space business of the future. They could grow to more than $ 100 billion a year and employ millions of people," said Patrick Collins, professor of environmental policy at Azabu University in Kanagawa Prefecture. ５★But sadly, most government space agencies in Japan and elsewhere have long kept space development to themselves and used it as a tool to compete with other nations, he said. ６★In Japan, however, he pointed to conservatism and a fear of taking responsibility for failures as key reasons why the industry remains closed. ７★Collins, an expert on the economics of space tourism, who has done research at London University, the University of Tokyo, the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science and the National Space Development Agency of Japan, said that while major economies spend more than $ 23 billion annually on civilian space activities -- $ 16 billion by the U.S., $ 5 billion by Europe and $ 2 billion by Japan -- only about 20 percent of those expenditures are spent on forms of space science that are of benefit to the general public, such as astronomy, or conducting experiments that are impossible except in zero-gravity conditions. ８★The rest -- approximately $ 18 billion -- is used for applications that Collins believes neither yield profit nor lead to space-related business, such as developing extremely expensive expendable vehicles or spending on the International Space Station (ISS). ９★ISS was scheduled to be completed in 1992 at a cost of $ 8 billion -- but is still under construction despite having already cost $ 100 billion. １０★"One purpose of the ISS was for it to be used by fee-paying companies, for instance as a zero-gravity research laboratory. Now, though, it's too expensive for anyone to use, so it won't pay as a business," Collins said. １１★As a consequence of this, space travel has effectively become a monopoly for a small group of very special people called astronauts -- who ordinary people are supposed to admire after paying out squillions in taxes to equip them for their jobs. １２★And although OECD government space agencies are legally required to encourage the development of commercial space industries, Collins said that commercial interest in services like remote-sensing satellite systems and telecommunications have been far too small to justify their huge investment. １３★"This situation of not pursuing space travel is because of a 'culture of monopoly' by government space agencies and their reluctance to take risks. But it has wasted way too much money," Collins said. １４★In fact, until now space development has largely been driven by the reality and the aftermath of Cold War competition between the U.S. and the former USSR. １５★Collins believes that in that context, there was no incentive for engineers to create spacecrafts that were economical, reusable or able to carry paying passengers. １６★"As a result, a huge amount of tax money was used to develop rockets that cost 10 billion yen, and are disposed of after a single use -- which not only wastes money, but also prevents the creation of reusable vehicles -- a key element in realizing passenger travel." １７★Collins said that at a time when the world's economy is in a precarious condition, with so much joblessness and a lack of new industries, this put an extremely heavy burden on taxpayers. １８★I call this an anti-space tourism policy," he said. １９★The technology to build suborbital passenger spacecraft existed in the 1960s, space hotels could have been possible in the '70s, and orbital passenger spacecraft in the '80s, he said. ２０★"If they had started at these times, they would have created several million permanent jobs and the world would be a much better place today." ２１★However, the U.S. and European governments are now on a better track, he said, with the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration recently encouraging venture companies to develop spacecraft for tourism, and the European Space Agency encouraging private companies to submit space-tourism plans through which they can win 150,000 euro (approximately $194,000) -- which Collins called "absolutely fantastic -- provided they continue." ２２★Collins said that the success of U.S.-based Scaled Composites LLC's SpaceShipOne in the Ansari X Prize was extremely significant, as that project was realized for a mere $20 million. ２３★"NASA spends $ 42 million a day -- so SpaceShipOne can be made in half a day. Then Japan's annual budget for space is $2 billion -- so SpaceShipOne could be made in four days," he said. ２４★Counter to this criticism of national cabals restricting or preventing ordinary people's space-travel prospects, it is a little-known fact that groups of Japanese experts have, since the early 1990s, been preparing detailed cost simulations of space tourism using reusable spacecraft. ２５★The Japanese Rocket Society, an academic group comprised of professors and experts in such fields as space engineering and aviation, began studies in 1993 on the profitability of developing the Kankoumaru reusable orbital spacecraft. ２６★The 22-meter-high, cone-shaped vehicle with a diameter of 18 meters, is designed to fly to an altitude of 200 km and orbit the Earth twice in three hours before returning to land. ２７★After carrying out a survey of 3,000 people, the group concluded that the Kankoumaru, which it is estimated would take 10 years and 1.4 trillion yen to develop, would be a paying proposition if 52 of the vehicles were launched 300 times a year with a load of 45 passengers per flight -- and with each passenger paying just 2.95 million yen. ２８★A subgroup then came up with an even lower-cost and technically easier plan, based on a suborbital spacecraft called Uchumaru, that would take three years and 30 billion yen to develop. ２９★Yoshifumi Inatani, a professor at Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, is a central member of the Japanese Rocket Society. ３０★In his view, "It was the first research of this kind with such a detailed business model. Although a lot of technological refinement is necessary, building Kankoumaru must be possible." ３１★Inatani's work at JAXA takes in the Reusable Rocket Vehicle Test (RVT), whose technology can be applied both to the Kankoumaru and Uchumaru. ３２★His laboratory is the only one in Japan that conducts reusable rocket experiments. So far, he has successfully test-flown the RVT eight times between 1999 and 2003, taking it up to 42 meters in altitude at the Noshiro test facility in Akita Prefecture. ３３★Although Inatani believes that Japanese investors tend to think in a much shorter time frame than those abroad, he says that luring investment for the project may be possible if enough public interest could be aroused. ３４★But Japan's main bottleneck lies in the extremely conservative culture of the government's space-policy makers and the public sector, who are both overly cautious and try to avoid sticking their necks out at all costs, he said. ３５★"There is a big difference in mentality between countries like the U.S., which lightheartedly accepts such new projects, with the FAA giving licenses to vehicles developed by venture companies," Inatani pointed out ruefully. "That would be very difficult in Japan." ３６★Also, he bemoaned the fact that although there are many people in Japan who are keen to foster space tourism, once someone actually starts it, there will be others -- including the media -- who will hysterically condemn their efforts in case of an accident. ３７★"This kind of mentality can only be changed if the government gives the first push -- by initiating the first project, or making the first technological investment. It also depends on people like us continuing to trumpet the success of our experiments." ３８★Collins said that Japan should keep making efforts to participate in space tourism, "because it's where Japan's strength can be used." ３９★"Japanese companies' major strength is in engineering and reliability, which are both vital when developing reusable vehicles that constantly need to withstand the forces of re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere. People will want to ride on a 'Made in Japan' spacecraft," he said. ４０★"Once we start living in space, it will lead to a 'world renaissance,' Collins proclaimed. "Then, we can sit on the ceiling, our clothes and hairstyles change and flying will be a part of our culture. Just the vision that there is such a new world is extraordinary . . . its educational benefit for children alone will be worth more than the cost of developing space-tourism vehicles." -------------------------------------------------------------- 【２】Easier Expression （やさしい英語で表現） -------------------------------------------------------------- １●The United States and Europe are finally making the way for space tourism to become a completely changed industry with new business. Although slow, some economists believe it could save the world economy that is not moving along well. ２●But many experts pointed at the government for having complete control of space to-date, and said that their overly control has badly delayed it. ３●In particular, Japan is often mentioned for having the best technological expertise, yet it has no plans to invest in this new space business which can be developed to its fullest. ４●Professor Patrick Collins from the environmental policy at Azabu University in Kanagawa Prefecture said space travel services for the general pubic have been agreed upon as the most important space business of the future. They could grow to more than $100 billion a year and employ millions of people. ５●But sadly, he said most government space agencies in Japan and other countries have long kept space development to themselves. They used it as a tool to compete with each other. ６●In Japan, the key reasons for the space industry to remain closed are due to conservatism and fear of taking the blame when there are failures. ７●Collins is an expert on economics of space tourism and has done research at London University, the University of Tokyo, the Institute of Space and Astronautical Science, and the National Space Development Agency of Japan. He said major economies spend more than $23 billion annually on civilian space activities, namely $16 billion by the US, $5 billion by Europe and $2 billion by Japan. However, only about 20 percent of the $23 billion are spent on space science activities that are of benefit to the general public. One of the activities is conducting experiments in zero-gravity conditions. ８●Collins believes the balance of about $18 billion is used for applications that neither produce profit nor lead to space-related business. Examples of these applications are developing very expensive expendable vehicles and spending on the International Space Station (ISS). ９●ISS was expected to be completed in 1992 at a cost of $8 billion. It is still under construction despite having already spent $100 billion. １０●One purpose of the ISS was to be used as a zero-gravity research laboratory by fee-paying companies. But now, it is too expensive for anyone to use and it will not be successful as a business. １１●As a result, space travel has become an activity only for a small group of very special people called astronauts. Ordinary people are supposed to admire them after paying huge taxes to prepare them for their jobs to travel in space. １２●OECD government space agencies are legally required to encourage companies to develop commercial space activities. However Collins said that commercial interest in services like remote-sensing satellite systems and telecommunications have been too small for companies to make huge investment. １３●Companies are not active in space travel mainly because of the culture of government space agencies controlling the industry. Companies are also not willing to take risks. Collins said that too much money has already been wasted. １４●In fact, until now space development has largely been driven by the real situation and the result of Cold War Competition between the US and the former USSR. １５●In that context, Collins believes that engineers are not keen and excited to create spacecrafts that were economical, reusable or able to carry paying passengers. １６●As a result, a huge amount of tax money was used to develop rockets that cost 10 billion yen. The rockets can be used only once and will be thrown away. This is a waste of money and also prevents the creation of reusable vehicles which is most important in making passenger travel happen. １７●Collins said that at a time when the world's economy is not looking good, with so many people without a job and a lack of new industries, it is very difficult for the people to keep paying tax money. １８●He called this an anti-space tourism policy. １９●According to Collins, the technology in 1960s was able to build suborbital passenger spacecraft and in the 70s, space hotels could have been built. It could even be possible to build orbital passenger spacecraft in the 80s. ２０●If they had started at those times, several millions of permanent jobs would have been created and the world would be a much better place today. ２１●However, the US and the European governments are now making good progress. The US Federal Aviation Administration recently encouraged venture companies to develop spacecraft for tourism. The European Space Agency also encouraged private companies to submit space-tourism plans and they stand to win 150,000 euro (about $194,000). Collins thinks this is excellent provided they continue. ２２●The success of Scaled Composites LLC's SpaceShipOne in the Ansari X Prize was very significant. The project was US-based and was made possible for just $20 million. ２３●Collins said the NASA spends $42 million a day in order that SpaceShipOne can be made in half a day. Japan's annual budget for space is $2 billion so that SpaceShipOne could be made in four days. ２４●There has been criticism on the government for stopping the possibility of ordinary people's space travel. It is however little-known that since early 1990s, groups of Japanese experts have been preparing detailed cost simulations of space tourism using reusable spacecraft. ２５●An academic group called the Japanese Rocket Society has begun studies in 1993 on the profitability of developing the Kankoumaru reusable orbital spacecraft. This group is formed by professors and experts in fields such as space engineering and aviation. ２６●They designed a cone-shaped vehicle which is 22-meter high and a diameter of 18 meters. The vehicle can fly to an altitude of 200km and orbit the Earth twice in three hours before returning to land. ２７●The Kankoumaru is estimated to take 10 years and 1.4 trillion yen to develop. The group did a survey with 3,000 people and concluded that if 52 of the vehicles were launched 300 times a year with a load of 54 passengers per flight, each passenger will pay just 2.95 million yen. ２８●A subgroup then came up with an even lower-cost and easier to make plan based on a suborbital spacecraft called Uchumaru. It would take 3 years and 30 billion yen to develop. ２９●Professor Yoshifumi Inatani from the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency's Institute of Space and Astronautical Science is a central member of the Japanese Rocket Society. ３０●In his view, the Kankoumaru is the first research with such a detailed business model and it is a must to build it even though a lot of technological refinement is needed. ３１●Inatani's work at JAXA takes in the Reusable Rocket Vehicle Test (RVT). Its technology can be used in both the Kankoumaru and Uchumaru. ３２●His laboratory is the only one in Japan that conducts reusable rocket experiments. So far, Inatani has successfully test-flown the RVT eight times between 1999 and 2003. It flew to an altitude of 42 meters at the Noshiro test facility in Akita Prefecture. ３３●Inatani believes that Japanese investors tend to think in a much shorter time frame than those abroad. However he also believes that attracting investment for the project may be possible if there is enough public interest. ３４●Japan's main problem lies in the conservative culture of the government's space policy-makers and its public sector. Both parties are very careful and try not to stick their necks out at all costs. ３５●Inatani said Japan has a big difference from countries like the US in terms of mentality. The US will lightheartedly accept new projects and the FAA will give licenses to vehicles developed by venture companies. This is however very difficult in Japan. ３６●He also complained that although there are many people in Japan who are keen to develop and promote space tourism, there will be others who will disapprove their efforts in case of an accident. The media is one of them. ３７●Inatani said this kind of mentality can only be changed if the government gives the first push. It can start the first project or make the first technological investment. He also said it depends on people like him to continue to make known the success of his experiments. ３８●Collins said that Japan should keep making efforts in space tourism because this is where its strength can be used. ３９●Japanese companies' major strength lies in engineering and reliability. Both of these are important in developing reusable vehicles that constantly need to withstand the forces of re-entry into the Earth's atmosphere. People will want to ride on a "made in Japan" spacecraft. ４０●Collins proclaimed that once we start living in space, it will lead to a 'world renaissance'. We can sit on the ceiling, our clothes and hair-styles change, and flying becomes a part of our culture. Just the vision of this new world is truly amazing. The educational benefit for children alone will be worth more than the cost of developing space tourism vehicles. -------------------------------------------------------------- 【３】編集後記 ＜空一面に鳥が飛び交う＞ -------------------------------------------------------------- Maxです。皆さん、しばらくKarenが編集後記を書いていなかったのを お気づきになられたかたも多かったかと存じます。現在本業が忙しく 第２３記事ができるのに時間がかかると連絡が入っております。 しばらく休刊させて頂きます。本当に申し訳ございません。 メルマガ「英語リーディング筋トレ―これで英字新聞も怖くない！」 の発行者の一人Yumiの編集後記です。 -------------------------------------------------------------- Yumiです。 最近、お仕事で津田沼駅のそばの会社に行っているのですが、研修会 場から外がちょうど見渡せるのですが、夕方になるとすごい光景が繰 り広げられます！！ 最初見たときは、本当に驚いてしまいました！！ 窓に目が釘付けになってしまいました(^^ゞ 津田沼に住んでいる方には有名なことなのかもしれませんが、初めて 訪れた人はきっと腰を抜かすくらい驚くかもしれません・・・ （ちょっと、大げさですが・・・(^_^;) 一体何かというと・・・・ 空一面に鳥が飛び交うのです！！！！ まるで、ヒッチコックの「鳥」の映画のように、空一面です！！ ものすごーーーーーい数の鳥が飛び交うのです！！ 受講生の人に聞くと毎日のことらしく、夕方の5時近くになると繰り 広げられている光景だそうです。 駅のそばの大学の校舎に沿って植えてある樹木がねぐららしく、毎日 そこへどこからか、大群が戻ってくるのです。 最初、こうもり？っと思ったのですが、そうではなくて「むくどり」 らしいです。 最初は、いきなり大群が来た！！ という印象だったのですが、先日2回目に訪れたときにゆっくり観察 してみたところ、遠方に小さな群れが見え始め、そこからほんの 少しずつ、別の群れが集まり始めるのです。 急激ではなく、ほんの少しずつ、、、 そして、徐々に数が増えていき、津田沼駅の周辺に来るころには、大 群と呼ぶにふさわしい数になってくるのです。 その大群の鳥がすぐに、ねぐらの樹木に止まるのではなく、まるでな にかの号令に呼応するかのうように、駅周辺を右往左往するのです。 まるで1匹が右旋回しだしたと思ったら、大群が全部右旋回し出し別 の1匹が左旋回したら、今度は、全部が左旋回するそんな動きでなん どもなんども旋回するのです。 そして、おびただしい数のムクドリがそれぞれ、1匹は小さくて、か わいい声を出しているのだと思うのですが、それだけの大群になりま すから、声だけでも耳をつんざくような音です！ 窓を閉めていても、その声が室内に響き渡るのです！！ 見ていて、圧巻です！ ネットで、検索してみたところ、やっぱりいろいろなブログで この現象を取り上げられていました。 もともとはねぐらを宅地開発のために追われたというのが、はじまり のようです。 行徳駅や北習志野の駅前にも同じような現象が起こっているようです。 安全な室内から見ている分には、映画の1シーンをみているようでも あり、自然の偉大な現象の一つを目前で見られるわくわく感があるの ですが、住んでいる方は、大変のようです。 そう、糞害がひどいようです。 でも、もとは人間が宅地開発したことが始まりなので、むくどりのほ うが被害者なんですけどね。。。。 でも、もしちょうどこの大群が来ているときに駅の高架橋を歩いてい たら、怖いし、糞が思いっきり落ちてきそうだな・・・(^^ゞ とも思いながら観ていました(^_^;) Yumi 「クレア＆イチロー物語コーナー」その３９ ↓ ↓ ↓ -------------------------------------------------------------- 【４】「クレア＆イチロー物語コーナー」その３９ -------------------------------------------------------------- 「もしもし、イチロー？マイクだ。15分も前からロビーで待っている んだが、何処にいるんだ？」と言う声が聞こえた。回りを見ると10メ ートルほど離れたところにいる男が携帯に向かって話しかけてる。 「僕もロビーでしばらく待っているけど、ひょっとして目の前にいる 人？」と聞くと、「イエ〜ス！」と答えが返ってきた。恋愛を極めた 男マイク・ローザ。イチローの第一印象は、「デブで、ブ男」・・・ ・だった。 マイクに初対面の挨拶をすると、さっそく外に出ようと言う。まず、 講義があると思っていたから、ダブルパンチで面を食らった。二人で 冬の寒いシカゴの通りを歩いていくと、マイクはすれ違う女性にやた らちょっかいを出す。 大声で話しかけたり、大きな身振りで注意を引いてみたり、こちらが 恥ずかしくなってしまう。マイクが言った。 「そこのバーに入ろう。」 「こんな昼間っから？」 バーに入るとさっそくウエイトレスの女の子にちょっかいを出し始め、 「シカゴで女の子を引っ掛けるには、どうするのが効果的？」って聞 いてる。 こっちが恥ずかしい。離れて座っていたくなるくらいだ。そのうち、 ウエイトレスの女の子はブスっとして、マイクに話しかけなくなった。 「怒っちゃったんじゃないの？」イチローが聞いた。 「みたいだね。」 「女の子を口説くどころじゃないじゃない。」 「これでいいんだよ。」 「？？？？」 「自分のスタイルに合う女性を選ぶのさ。こちらが女性に合わせる必 要は無い。」 「でも、女性が誰も相手にしてくれなかったら、選ぶどころじゃない じゃない。」 「確かに、今のイチローじゃ、相手をしてくれる女性は少なそうだな」 「少ないどころじゃなくて、全然さ。」 「それは、女性に接するツボを知らないからだよ。」 「どうしたら、そのツボを身につけられるの？」 「ホテルの部屋に戻ろうか？」 「？？？？？」 http://www.claireichiro.com/ 「クレア＆イチロー物語」を読んだ方から感想、質問を募集します。 info@customer-respect.com -------------------------------------------------------------- 【５】仲間を紹介 -------------------------------------------------------------- ●このメルマガは、外資系企業勤務１５年のMax, と同じ企業で勤務し ていたシンガポール人のKaren により作成されています。 ＜有償・広告募集＞ このメルマガに広告を掲載したい方へ http://www.customer-respect.com/ads.html 〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜 ★ 発行人： Max and Karen ★ http://www.customer-respect.com/ ★ E-MAIL： info@customer-respect.com ★ メルマガの趣旨は英語学習にあり、使用記事の成否・内容につ いての責任は一切負いかねます。 ★ 本メルマガは、「ジャパンタイムズ」の正式な「使用権」を得 て掲載されています。（http://www.japantimes.co.jp/） ■ まぐまぐＩＤ 0000145010 ■ 知人・友人への転送、社内での回覧はご自由にどうぞ。 ■ その際は、全文を改変せずに転送・回覧ください。 (C) Copyright 2004 ■ 購読・解除はご自身でお願いいたします。こちらから出来ます。 → http://www.customer-respect.com/mag_registration2.html 〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜〜
