[時事英文] 為何台灣僅42例新冠病毒確診*
Why Taiwan Has Just 42 Coronavirus Cases
Taiwan sits near Japan, China and South Korea, three countries with some of the world’s worst outbreaks of the deadly coronavirus, but the island itself has just 42 isolated cases.
1. sit near 位於…附近、鄰近
2. outbreaks of the deadly coronavirus 致命新冠病毒的爆發
3. isolated cases 個別案件
台灣鄰近日、中國和韓國，這三個國家是致命新冠病毒爆發最嚴重的國家，然台灣僅有42例個案確診。
*Coronavirus Update (Live): https://www.worldometers.info/coronavirus/
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Chalk it up to extra early, effective preparedness, analysts and policymakers say – so effective that people’s approval of the government unexpectedly soared last month.
4. chalk something up to something …歸因於…
5. effective preparedness有效的預備狀態
6. approval of the government soared 對政府的認可驟升
分析人士和政策制定者表示，歸因於及早的有效的抗疫準備，斐然成果讓上個月人們對政府的認可意外驟升。
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Taiwanese health officials saw the virus taking shape in the central Chinese Wuhan in December and began checking passengers who flew in from there. They also cut off flights from much of China, the outbreak origin, before a lot of peers around Asia did.
7. take shape 成形
8. cut off flights 中斷航班
9. the outbreak origin 疫情的起源
10. epicenter of the outbreak 疫情的起源點
台灣衛生署官員在12月發現該病毒的疫情於中國中部武漢市初具規模，便開始檢驗自該地搭機來台的乘客。更在其他亞洲國家有所反應前，便中斷從中國大部分地區（疫情的起源）出發的航班。
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Now almost every public building in Taipei offers hand sanitizer and a lot of them, such as schools, require that anyone entering submit to a fever check. Taiwan's Centers for Disease Control announces any new cases every day. In February it began rationing facemask purchases to head off panic buying.
11. hand sanitizer 洗手抗菌劑，消毒劑
12. a fever check 發燒檢查
13. announce new cases 發布新的確診案例
14. ration (v.) facemask purchases 口罩配給購買
15. head off 防止
16. panic buying 恐慌性搶購
現在，台北幾乎每棟公共建築都提供洗手消毒液，很多公共機關例如學校，都要求來者接受體溫測試。台灣衛生福利部疾病管制署每天都會發布是否有新的確診案例。在二月份，疾管署開始口罩配給購買，以杜絕恐慌性搶購。
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“With the hit from Wuhan pneumonia, most people originally figured Taiwan was going to be miserable this time because of [sic]* ties with mainland China are so close, and that it couldn’t be avoided,” said You Ying-lung, chairman of the Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation polling agency, using a local term for the disease officially dubbed COVID-19.
17. figure (v.) 認為
18. ties with與…連結
19. could not be avoided 無法避免
*because, please check the comments
「受武漢市肺炎的衝擊，大多數人原以為這次台灣將因與中國大陸的緊密連繫而疫情嚴重且無法避免」民調機構台灣民意基金會董事長游盈隆表示，他以正式命名為COVID-19病毒的俗稱(武漢肺炎)談論疫情。
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“But as the things became clear, it turned out Taiwan wasn’t so miserable and in fact compared to other countries in the world, it’s got the best performance,” he said.
20. become clear 變得清楚
21. turn out …地發生（或發展）；結果是（尤指出乎意料的結果）
22. the best performance最好的表現
「但是隨著事情變得明朗，事實證明台灣並沒有那麼嚴重，實際上，與世界其他國家相比，台灣表現最好。」游董事長表示。
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The government first took notice of the virus in December as people in China began talking about it informally. In response, the Centers for Disease Control started onboard quarantine of all direct flights from Wuhan on December 31. The centers said on its website that by January 9 it had “inspected” 14 flights with 1,317 passengers and attendants.
23. take notice of 注意
24. in response 作為因應
隨著中國人民開始非正式地談論該病毒，台灣政府於12月關注到此事。作為因應，疾管署於12月31日開始對武漢所有直航進行機上隔離檢疫。疾管署於其網站上表示，截至1月9日，已經檢驗了14班航班，共 1,317名乘客與空服員。
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The disease caught the attention of other countries in late January. Although numbers of new cases are dropping in China, Japan and South Korea are grappling with recent outbreaks.
25. catch the attention of... 引起...的注意
26. grapple with... 與…搏鬥
該疾病於一月下旬引起了其他國家的注意。儘管在中國，新的確診案例數量正在下降，但日本和韓國正與疫情近期的境內爆發搏鬥。
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Taiwanese citizens, Lo said, consider transparency “very important.” The government hopes to release information that keeps people on guard without inciting any panic, analysts believe.
27. consider transparency to be important認為透明度很重要
28. release information 發布資訊
29. keep people on guard 保持警惕
30. incite panic 煽動恐慌
羅(立委)表示，台灣公民認為透明度「非常重要」。分析者認為，政府希望發布能夠使人們保持警惕的消息，而不引起任何恐慌。
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Officials are looking for ways now to minimize economic impacts of the virus.
Parliament approved a $1.96 billion stimulus package last month for companies shaken by the outbreak. After the virus subsides, Lo said, the government will come out with discount vouchers to encourage spending. More might be in the pipeline.
31. minimize economic impact 減少經濟影響
32. a stimulus package 振興方案
33. be shaken by the outbreak 受疫情爆發所震盪、削弱
34. discount voucher 優惠券
35. encourage spending 鼓勵消費
36. in the pipeline 在籌劃中；在進行中
官員們正在尋找使病毒的經濟影響最小化的方法。
國會上個月批准了用於受疫情爆發所震盪的公司企業的19.6億美元振興紓困特別預算案。盧表示病毒平息後，政府將提供優惠券以鼓勵消費。可能還有更多措施在籌畫當中。
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“We need to do something to help the small and medium-sized enterprises to pass through this kind of difficult period,” Lo said. “The government for example needs to lower the interest rates and to help the people or the companies, or factories, to borrow new loans from the bank, so this is the first stage.”
37. pass through this difficult period 渡過這個艱難的時期
38. lower interest rate 降低利率
「我們需要做些事情來幫助中小企業渡過這種困難時期。」 盧還表示：「“例如，政府需要降低利率，並幫助人民、公司或工廠從銀行借貸，這是第一步。」
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Action against the coronavirus to date has boosted President Tsai Ing-wen’s approval rating to 68.5% in February up from 56.7% in January and on par with what she polled right after taking office in 2016, a Taiwanese Public Opinion Foundation poll showed February 24. Local television network TVBS gave the government an 82% approval rating for its handling of the outbreak.
“The meaning is the Tsai government is doing pretty well,” You said.
39. boost approval rating 提高支持率
40. on par with… 與...相當
41. its handling of the outbreak 它對疫情的處理
42. do well 做得好
台灣民意基金會2月24日的一項民意調查顯示，迄今為止，針對冠狀病毒的行動已將蔡英文總統的支持率從1月份的56.7％提升至2月份的68.5％，與她在2016年上任後的民調持平。本地電視網絡TVBS對政府的疫情處理給予82％的認可度。
「這表示蔡政府的表現很好。」游董事長表示。
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完整報導: Why Taiwan Has Just 42 Coronavirus Cases while Neighbors Report Hundreds or Thousands
https://www.voanews.com/science-health/coronavirus-outbreak/why-taiwan-has-just-42-coronavirus-cases-while-neighbors-report
Image source: https://www.taiwannews.com.tw/en/news/3883510
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