2008年9月30日 星期二

"best before date", use-by date

Listeria prompts Hygaard recall
Sherwood Park News - Sherwood Park,Alberta,Canada
Hygaard, a Sherwood Park-based company, is doing a voluntary recall on certain products with the best-before dates from Oct. 24 up to and including Nov. 16. ...






Wrap suggested households seeking to balance their finances could save money by following basic tips to prevent food waste, such as planning shopping trips better and keeping a closer check on use-by dates. It also pointed out that many people do not know the difference between a "best before date", which has no implications for food safety, and use-by data, which must be followed.

What a waste: Britain throws away £10bn of food every year


use-by date 消費期限や賞味期限best before date

2008年9月28日 星期日

first-ever spacewalk

Chinese spacecraft returns safely to Earth

Chinese spacecraft Shenzhou 7 has returned safely to Earth after a three-day trip into space that included China's first-ever spacewalk. The three men on board touched down safely near the planned landing site in the northern Chinese province of Inner Mongolia. The capsule's descent by parachute was shown live on Chinese state television. State-run Xinhua news agency reported that the craft withstood the dangerous re-entry into Earth's atmosphere well and that the men were in good health. Commander Zhai Zhigang on Saturday became the first-ever Chinese person to conduct a spacewalk. Shenzhou 7 also placed a small satellite into orbit.


中國航天員進行首次太空行走
中國航天員週六進行了中國歷史上首次太空行走﹐

標志著中國雄心勃勃的太空計劃的一個里程碑。中國的太空事業正迅速發展﹐日漸向美國和俄羅斯發起挑戰。


headlong, abstract


Obviously, any attempt to define operationally 80 per cent butterfat runs headlong into the need for statistical techniques and criteria. Again, the words 80 per cent butterfat, by themselves have no meaning.”
顯然,任何嘗試要可運作地界定「80%的奶脂肪」者,馬上碰到他需要統計技術和準繩。 由於可見「80%的奶脂肪」本身並沒有任何意義。


 ab・stract



  
━━ a. 抽象的な, 観念的な, 理論的な; 非現実的な, 空想的な; 深遠な; 放心の, ぼんやりした; 【美】抽象派の.
━━ n. 抜粋, 大要, 要約; 抽象的観念; 抽象美術の作品.
 in the abstract 抽象的に, 理論上.
━━  vt. 抜き取る, 抽出する, 要約する, 抜粋する; 抽象(化)する; (心を)奪う; 盗む; (注意を)そらす.
 abstract oneself from …から身を引く, 引退する.
 abstract class 【コンピュータ】抽象クラス.
 abstract data tpe 【コンピュータ】抽象データ型.
 ab・stract・ed ━━ a. ぼんやりした; 【化】抽出[分離]された.
 abstract expressionism 抽象表現主義.
 ab・strac・tion ━━ n. 抽象; 抽象的概念; 非現実的な考え; 放心; 窃取; 【美】抽象派の作品; 【化】抽出, 分離.
ab・strac・tion・ism n. 【美】抽象主義.
ab・strac・tion・ist n. 抽象美術家.
 ab・strac・tive ━━ a. 抽象力のある; 抽象性の; 抜粋の.
 abstract noun 【文法】抽象名詞.
 abstract of title 【法】権原要約書 ((当該土地に関する特定人の権原の歴史的由来を示す)).

Quote
"Washington isn't a city, it's an abstraction." — Dylan Thomas


abstract (GENERAL) 

adjective
1 existing as an idea, feeling or quality, not as a material object:
Truth and beauty are abstract concepts.

2 describes an argument or discussion that is general and not based on particular examples:
This debate is becoming too abstract - let's have some hard facts!

the abstract noun [S]
general ideas:
I have difficulty dealing with the abstract - let's discuss particular cases.
So far we've only discussed the question in the abstract (= without referring to any real examples).

abstraction
noun [C] FORMAL
She's always talking in abstractions (= in a general way, without real examples).

headlong
adverb, adjective
1 [before noun] with great speed or without thinking:
The car skidded and plunged headlong over the cliff.
In the headlong rush to buy houses, many people got into debt.

2 US FOR headfirst

headfirst Show phonetics
adjective, adverb
1 [before noun] (US ALSO headlong) with the head going first:
She dived headfirst into the pool.

2 without thinking or preparation:
You shouldn't rush headfirst into starting your own business without proper advice.


head・long


━━ ad., a. まっさかさまに[の]; まっしぐらに[の]; 向う見ずに[の], 性急に.
head

2008年9月27日 星期六

ride on sth/sb, Ride-On, rap (JUDGMENT)

Four-Wheeled Ride-On Vehicles Recalled by Razor USA Due to Throttle Controller Defect

WASHINGTON, D.C. - The U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission, in cooperation with the firm named below, today announced a voluntary recall of the following consumer product. Consumers should stop using recalled products immediately unless otherwise instructed.
Name of Product: Razor® Dirt Quad Electric Powered Ride-On Vehicles
Units: About 30,000
Importer: Razor USA LLC, of Cerritos, Calif.
Hazard: The control module for the throttle can fail and cause the electric ride-on vehicle to unexpectedly surge forward, posing a risk of injury to the user or a bystander.
Incidents/Injuries: Razor has received 60 reports of the vehicles unexpectedly surging forward, including two reports of injuries.
Description: This recall involves Razor® Dirt Quad electrically powered ride-on vehicles. Product ID numbers included in the recall begin with 103110-01 or 103110-02. The product ID numbers are located on the bar code affixed to the right step of the vehicle, on the charger and on the retail packaging. Product ID numbers beginning with 103110-03 or later are not included in this recall.
Sold by: Authorized dealers nationwide from August 2006 through September 2007 for about $400.
Manufactured in: China
Remedy: Consumers should immediately stop using the product and contact Razor for a free replacement controller.
Consumer Contact: For additional information, contact Razor USA at (800) 813-3155 anytime, or visit the firm’s Web site at www.razor.com/recall


---


Blog Posts Poke Holes in ‘Taste Test’ by Microsoft
New York Times - United StatesBy DAN MITCHELL SAN FRANCISCO — Deserved or not, the Windows Vista operating system from Microsoft gets a bad rap. But the company’s recent effort to repair ...




rap (JUDGMENT)
noun [C] US SLANG
a judgment or a reaction:
The new show got a bum/bad rap (= was severely criticized) in all the papers.


rap
 (PUNISHMENT)
noun [C or U] MAINLY US SLANG
an accusation of crime, or a punishment:
He always said he was jailed on a bum rap (= false accusation).
The police caught him, but somehow he managed to beat the rap (= escape punishment).
I'm not going to take the rap for you (= be punished for something you did).


ride on sth/sb phrasal verb
When something important, such as your reputation or money, rides on a particular person or thing, it will be gained or achieved if that person or thing is successful:
The future of the company now rides on the new managing director.
I have a lot of money riding on that horse (= I will win or lose a lot of money if that horse wins or loses the race).



2008年9月26日 星期五

complacency, go by sth (BASE)

"Of all the things a leader should fear, complacency heads the list."


If history is anything to. go by, the coming century should be. full of exciting surprises.


go by sth (BASE) phrasal verb
to base an opinion, decision or judgment on something:
What do you go by when you're deciding whether or not to employ someone?
Going by what she said yesterday, I would say she's about to resign.
If past experience is anything to go by, he'll completely ignore our suggestions and then change his mind at the last minute.
complacency Show phonetics
noun [U] (ALSO complacence) DISAPPROVING
a feeling of calm satisfaction with your own abilities or situation that prevents you from trying harder:
What annoys me about these girls is their complacency - they seem to have no desire to expand their horizons.
There's no room for complacency if we want to stay in this competition!

complacent Show phonetics
adjective DISAPPROVING
feeling so satisfied with your own abilities or situation that you feel you do not need to try any harder:
a complacent smile/attitude
We can't afford to become complacent about any of our products.

complacently Show phonetics
adverb DISAPPROVING

com・pla・cent



-->
━━ a. 自己満足の, 得意の, いい気な.
com・pla・cence, com・pla・cen・cy ━━ n.
com・pla・cent・ly ━━ ad.