美国国家公共电台 NPR High-Tech 'Bodega' Falls Short Of The Real Thing

 

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

A couple of high-tech¹ entrepreneurs thought they'd put a personable name on an impersonal² product. Paul McDonald and Ashwath Rajan, formerly³ of Google, unveiled a box this week with glass doors stocked with nonperishable items that people can unlock with their cell phones while a camera records what they take and charges them. It's essentially⁴ a tech-connected vending⁵ machine. But the entrepreneurs chose a name for their venture that many people found offensive - bodega. The name's taken from small neighborhood shops, usually in New York, stocked with products people run out of or suddenly crave⁶ - candy, gum, soda⁷ and, yes, cigarettes, newspapers, lottery⁸ tickets, condoms, tampons and soap.

Many bodegas are in Hispanic neighborhoods run by Hispanic and Asian shopkeepers. They become a stop for people out to walk their dogs or take a stroll from their apartments who decide to linger for a few minutes to buy a magazine or candy bar and talk to other people about how bad the Mets are, how nice the weather is, and kvetch about politicians, landlords and the Number 7 train from Flushing.

Bodegas are often the place sixth graders stop after school to buy a Coke or a candy bar. The bodega owners know their name and tells them, run home and do your homework. The bodega owner will often let a good customer just take something they need if they have no money until they get their paycheck. There is no app for that.

Real bodegas are small affordable⁹ businesses you don't need a stock offering to open. But if the high-tech-minibar faux bodega takes off, it could be at the expense of bodegas owned by real people who keep a cat on the counter and become vital characters in a neighborhood. To me, it's like sacrilegious. You want to take this name and use it to make money off it, Frank Garcia, who chairs the State Coalition¹⁰ of Hispanic Chambers¹¹ of Commerce, told The New York Post.

The instant reaction on social media was so sharp that Paul McDonald and Ashwath Rajan had to quickly write on Medium, we did some homework - speaking to New Yorkers, branding people, and even running some survey work asking about the name and any potential offense¹² it might cause. But it's clear that we may not have been asking the right questions of the right people. Despite our best intentions and our admiration¹³ for traditional bodegas, we clearly hit a nerve, said the entrepreneurs. We intended only admiration. But their statement leaves a question unanswered - will the name stay?

(SOUNDBITE OF PRETTY LIGHTS' "YELLOW BIRD")

1 high-tech   

adj.高科技的

参考例句：

• The economy is in the upswing which makes high-tech services in more demand too.经济在蓬勃发展，这就使对高科技服务的需求量也在加大。
• The quest of a cure for disease with high-tech has never ceased. 人们希望运用高科技治疗疾病的追求从未停止过。

2 impersonal   

adj.无个人感情的，与个人无关的，非人称的

参考例句：

• Even his children found him strangely distant and impersonal.他的孩子们也认为他跟其他人很疏远，没有人情味。
• His manner seemed rather stiff and impersonal.他的态度似乎很生硬冷淡。

3 formerly   

adv.从前，以前

参考例句：

• We now enjoy these comforts of which formerly we had only heard.我们现在享受到了过去只是听说过的那些舒适条件。
• This boat was formerly used on the rivers of China.这船从前航行在中国内河里。

4 essentially   

adv.本质上，实质上，基本上

参考例句：

• Really great men are essentially modest.真正的伟人大都很谦虚。
• She is an essentially selfish person.她本质上是个自私自利的人。

5 vending   

v.出售（尤指土地等财产）( vend的现在分词 )；（尤指在公共场所）贩卖；发表（意见，言论）；声明

参考例句：

• Why Are You Banging on the Vending Machine? 你为什么敲打这台自动售货机？ 来自朗文快捷英语教程 2
• Coca-Cola had to adapt almost 300,000 vending machines to accept the new coins. 可口可乐公司必须使将近三十万台自动贩卖机接受新货币。 来自超越目标英语 第5册

6 crave   

vt.渴望得到，迫切需要，恳求，请求

参考例句：

• Many young children crave attention.许多小孩子渴望得到关心。
• You may be craving for some fresh air.你可能很想呼吸呼吸新鲜空气。

7 soda   

n.苏打水；汽水

参考例句：

• She doesn't enjoy drinking chocolate soda.她不喜欢喝巧克力汽水。
• I will freshen your drink with more soda and ice cubes.我给你的饮料重加一些苏打水和冰块。

8 lottery   

n.抽彩；碰运气的事，难于算计的事

参考例句：

• He won no less than ￡5000 in the lottery.他居然中了5000英镑的奖券。
• They thought themselves lucky in the lottery of life.他们认为自己是变幻莫测的人生中的幸运者。

9 affordable   

adj.支付得起的，不太昂贵的

参考例句：

• The rent for the four-roomed house is affordable.四居室房屋的房租付得起。
• There are few affordable apartments in big cities.在大城市中没有几所公寓是便宜的。

10 coalition   

n.结合体，同盟，结合，联合

参考例句：

• The several parties formed a coalition.这几个政党组成了政治联盟。
• Coalition forces take great care to avoid civilian casualties.联盟军队竭尽全力避免造成平民伤亡。

11 chambers   

n.房间( chamber的名词复数 )；（议会的）议院；卧室；会议厅

参考例句：

• The body will be removed into one of the cold storage chambers. 尸体将被移到一个冷冻间里。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Mr Chambers's readable book concentrates on the middle passage: the time Ransome spent in Russia. Chambers先生的这本值得一看的书重点在中间：Ransome在俄国的那几年。 来自互联网

12 offense   

n.犯规，违法行为；冒犯，得罪

参考例句：

• I hope you will not take any offense at my words. 对我讲的话请别见怪。
• His words gave great offense to everybody present.他的发言冲犯了在场的所有人。

13 admiration   

n.钦佩，赞美，羡慕

参考例句：

• He was lost in admiration of the beauty of the scene.他对风景之美赞不绝口。
• We have a great admiration for the gold medalists.我们对金牌获得者极为敬佩。