【英语语言学习】请不要把这封邮件当成垃圾邮件删掉

SCOTT SIMON, HOST:

 

Open up your email. On any given morning, you might get two or three notes from friends, six or seven from people trying to sell you energy pills, offshore¹ real estate or virility² enhancers. And the good news, you've just won the Lithuanian National Lottery³, which you can't recall entering, or that a man in Kenya needs your help; please sir, only you can help to move $20 million through your bank account. All he needs is your routing number.

 

That's spam. Not the meat-like loaf, but unbidden email, many of them not even sent by actual people but robot programs and their volume is often much greater than the amount of real information that people can find in their inboxes. "Spam: A Shadow History of the Internet," his title of a new book by Finn Brunton who's now assistant professor of information in the School of Information at the University of Michigan.

 

He joins us from the studios of WUOM in Ann Arbor⁴. Thanks so much for being with us.

 

FINN BRUNTON: Thank you for having me. It's a pleasure to be here.

 

SIMON: First off, how did Pitcairn Island become the center for spam?

 

(LAUGHTER)

 

BRUNTON: It's a marvelous story. Pitcairn Island, which is the least populated jurisdiction⁵ in the world, fascinated me because I was familiar with it only as an extremely minor⁶ historical event. It's where the Bounty⁷ mutineers went when they needed to find an extremely remote place to hide.

 

SIMON: Right. Mr. Christian⁸. Wound up on Pitcairn Island, yeah.

 

BRUNTON: Exactly. And I was shocked to learn that, per capita, Pitcairn Island was the world's number one source of spam, and I was just wondering, as anyone would who encounters this statistic⁹, how is this possible? And it's because of the fact that the people on Pitcairn, they don't realize that they have been made into part of the spam system.

 

What has happened is that one of the computers on the island has been taken over by a malware program, so this island with 45 or 50 people is broadcasting spam without anyone consciously intending it.

 

SIMON: Explain to us how it developed, because I have an idea. Let me try my pet theory on you, the academic expert, that communications technologies expand as they become capable of delivering jokes.

 

BRUNTON: Well, I think you are actually very close. The old rule of thumb in media history was that the first private use for any new major communications technology is pornography, but somewhere cheek by jowl with that is humor. One of my favorite details about the history of the telegraph is how quickly an incredible subculture of jokes and gags and pranks¹⁰ and references began to proliferate¹¹ among the telegraph boys, who are actually managing the equipment.

 

But indeed, in the case of the internet, from very early on, when it was just these early, often somewhat ragged¹² or haphazard¹³ networks between computers mostly in academic settings, the graduate students who were using these machines, as soon as they were not required to use them for some professional purpose, as soon as they had an off hour to kill in the basement, started using them to replay old Monty Python routines, getting back to jokes.

 

And of course one of the most famous Monty Python routines is the sort of Spam chorus that the Vikings deliver in the made-up Green Midget Cafe in that sketch¹⁴, where the couple is trying to order something from the menu and everything has Spam in it.

 

(SOUNDBITE OF MONTY PYTHON SKETCH)

 

MONTY PYTHON'S FLYING CIRCUS: What do you mean, ugh, I don't like Spam.

 

Spam, Spam, Spam, Spam, Spam...

 

BRUNTON: So it starts up as a joke, but the term very quickly becomes the universal term for anyone who's doing that kind of annoying, jokey, time-wasting behavior on these very early computer networks.

 

SIMON: Well, help us understand what robotics do.

 

BRUNTON: When you get a spam message, sometimes it'll have an attachment¹⁵, and the message will say something like, you know, it'll be a message from a friend and it'll say, like, oh, hey, could you take a look at this. And then you open it and it doesn't seem to do anything. It's just a bunch of weird¹⁶ symbols or it fails to open.

 

You say, oh, something went wrong. I don't know, I'll just delete this and carry on with my day. When you launch that, an exploit within the structure of the software that you're using has quietly taken over your computer and it is using the computer's broadband connection to quietly, in the background, without your knowledge, begin sending out spam messages, following the instructions of a central network called a command and control system.

 

So what that means, if it costs you nothing to send 100 million messages and only some vanishingly small percentage of a percentage ever gets through, we'll just send 100 million more, you know. And if you can get another 2,000 or 3,000 actually through, you can still make a viable¹⁷ business out of it.

 

SIMON: Well, help us understand the scale of that viable business.

 

BRUNTON: You always had spammers who are just crooks¹⁸, but then you had a lot of people who were moving business models in from the world of, for example, pharmaceutical¹⁹ advertisements in the back pages of weightlifting magazines. The people working now are out and out criminals. And that actually frees them up to potentially make a lot more money than they did before, because if they can convince you to buy something, it's no longer about actually selling you the pharmaceuticals²⁰.

 

It's about taking your credit card information and then using that for identity theft purposes. And to be clear, spam email is upwards²¹ of 85 to 90 percent of all email sent on any given day. It's just that most of the time we don't see most of it because our filters are pretty good, but it's a tidal wave that's slamming into these walls that we've built day after day after day and we see the little bit that slops over.

 

SIMON: May I ask, how do you go through life knowing what you do?

 

BRUNTON: I use what's called a password manager in my browser²² and this is a system, it will automatically generate very, very long passwords for any new account you need to set up and then it will keep track of all of them for you and log you in. Because the major danger here is not that someone will necessarily steal your computer. The major danger is an automatic system that, you know, breaks into Gawker's password store or what have you, and then begins to systematically²³ search the Internet for other things of yours that it can access using that particular arrangement of email and password. And having a good password manager makes that impossible.

 

SIMON: Finn Brunton of the University of Michigan. His new book: "Spam: A Shadow History of the Internet." Thanks so much for being with us.

 

BRUNTON: Thank you for having me. It was a pleasure.

 

(SOUNDBITE OF MONTY PYTHON "SPAM" SKETCH)

 

MONTY PYTHON'S FLYING CIRCUS: Egg and Spam. Egg, bacon and Spam. Egg, bacon, sausage and Spam. Spam, bacon, sausage and Spam.

 

SIMON: And you can learn about another of his recommended techniques for protecting yourself from spam by going to our website - gee²⁴, going to our website to protect yourself from spam. Why not? npr.org.

 

(SOUNDBITE OF MONTY PYTHON THEME MUSIC)

 

SIMON: You're listening to WEEKEND EDITION from NPR News.

1 offshore   

adj.海面的，吹向海面的；adv.向海面

参考例句：

• A big program of oil exploration has begun offshore.一个大规模的石油勘探计划正在近海展开。
• A gentle current carried them slowly offshore.和缓的潮流慢慢地把他们带离了海岸。

2 virility   

n.雄劲，丈夫气

参考例句：

• He wanted his sons to become strong,virile,and athletic like himself.他希望他的儿子们能长得像他一样强壮、阳刚而又健美。
• He is a tall,virile man with rugged good looks.他是个身材高大、体魄健壮、相貌粗犷英俊的男子。

3 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。

4 arbor   

n.凉亭；树木

参考例句：

• They sat in the arbor and chatted over tea.他们坐在凉亭里，边喝茶边聊天。
• You may have heard of Arbor Day at school.你可能在学校里听过植树节。

5 jurisdiction   

n.司法权，审判权，管辖权，控制权

参考例句：

• It doesn't lie within my jurisdiction to set you free.我无权将你释放。
• Changzhou is under the jurisdiction of Jiangsu Province.常州隶属江苏省。

6 minor   

adj.较小(少)的，较次要的；n.辅修学科；vi.辅修

参考例句：

• The young actor was given a minor part in the new play.年轻的男演员在这出新戏里被分派担任一个小角色。
• I gave him a minor share of my wealth.我把小部分财产给了他。

7 bounty   

n.慷慨的赠予物，奖金；慷慨，大方；施与

参考例句：

• He is famous for his bounty to the poor.他因对穷人慷慨相助而出名。
• We received a bounty from the government.我们收到政府给予的一笔补助金。

8 Christian   

adj.基督教徒的；n.基督教徒

参考例句：

• They always addressed each other by their Christian name.他们总是以教名互相称呼。
• His mother is a sincere Christian.他母亲是个虔诚的基督教徒。

9 statistic   

n.统计量；adj.统计的，统计学的

参考例句：

• Official statistics show real wages declining by 24%.官方统计数字表明实际工资下降了24%。
• There are no reliable statistics for the number of deaths in the battle.关于阵亡人数没有可靠的统计数字。

10 pranks   

n.玩笑，恶作剧( prank的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• Frank's errancy consisted mostly of pranks. 法兰克错在老喜欢恶作剧。 来自辞典例句
• He always leads in pranks and capers. 他老是带头胡闹和开玩笑。 来自辞典例句

11 proliferate   

vi.激增，(迅速)繁殖，增生

参考例句：

• We must not proliferate nuclear arms.我们决不能扩散核武器。
• Rabbits proliferate when they have plenty of food.兔子有充足的食物就会繁衍得很快。

12 ragged   

adj.衣衫褴褛的，粗糙的，刺耳的

参考例句：

• A ragged shout went up from the small crowd.这一小群人发出了刺耳的喊叫。
• Ragged clothing infers poverty.破衣烂衫意味着贫穷。

13 haphazard   

adj.无计划的，随意的，杂乱无章的

参考例句：

• The town grew in a haphazard way.这城镇无计划地随意发展。
• He regrerted his haphazard remarks.他悔不该随口说出那些评论话。

14 sketch   

n.草图；梗概；素描；v.素描；概述

参考例句：

• My sister often goes into the country to sketch. 我姐姐常到乡间去写生。
• I will send you a slight sketch of the house.我将给你寄去房屋的草图。

15 attachment   

n.附属物，附件；依恋；依附

参考例句：

• She has a great attachment to her sister.她十分依恋她的姐姐。
• She's on attachment to the Ministry of Defense.她现在隶属于国防部。

16 weird   

adj.古怪的，离奇的；怪诞的，神秘而可怕的

参考例句：

• From his weird behaviour,he seems a bit of an oddity.从他不寻常的行为看来，他好像有点怪。
• His weird clothes really gas me.他的怪衣裳简直笑死人。

17 viable   

adj.可行的，切实可行的，能活下去的

参考例句：

• The scheme is economically viable.这个计划从经济效益来看是可行的。
• The economy of the country is not viable.这个国家经济是难以维持的。

18 crooks   

n.骗子( crook的名词复数 )；罪犯；弯曲部分；（牧羊人或主教用的）弯拐杖v.弯成钩形( crook的第三人称单数 )

参考例句：

• The police are getting after the crooks in the city. 警察在城里追捕小偷。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• The cops got the crooks. 警察捉到了那些罪犯。 来自《简明英汉词典》

19 pharmaceutical   

adj.药学的，药物的；药用的，药剂师的

参考例句：

• She has donated money to establish a pharmaceutical laboratory.她捐款成立了一个药剂实验室。
• We are engaged in a legal tussle with a large pharmaceutical company.我们正同一家大制药公司闹法律纠纷。

20 pharmaceuticals   

n.医药品；药物( pharmaceutical的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• the development of new pharmaceuticals 新药的开发
• The companies are pouring trillions of yen into biotechnology research,especially for pharmaceuticals and new seeds. 这些公司将大量资金投入生物工艺学研究，尤其是药品和新种子方面。 来自《简明英汉词典》

21 upwards   

adv.向上，在更高处...以上

参考例句：

• The trend of prices is still upwards.物价的趋向是仍在上涨。
• The smoke rose straight upwards.烟一直向上升。

22 browser   

n.浏览者

参考例句：

• View edits in a web browser.在浏览器中看编辑的效果。
• I think my browser has a list of shareware links.我想在浏览器中会有一系列的共享软件链接。

23 systematically   

adv.有系统地

参考例句：

• This government has systematically run down public services since it took office.这一屆政府自上台以来系统地削减了公共服务。
• The rainforest is being systematically destroyed.雨林正被系统地毀灭。

24 gee   

n.马；int.向右！前进！，惊讶时所发声音；v.向右转

参考例句：

• Their success last week will gee the team up.上星期的胜利将激励这支队伍继续前进。
• Gee,We're going to make a lot of money.哇！我们会赚好多钱啦！