VOA慢速英语2016--Pokemon Go热潮席卷美国

AS IT IS 2016-07-13 Pokemon Go Craze Sweeps US Pokemon Go热潮席卷美国

This is What’s Trending Today.

Pikachu, where are you?

That is on the minds of millions of people in the U.S. who downloaded the Pokemon Go smartphone app after it launched July 6.

If you remember the Pokemon card trading game from the 1990s, you are probably familiar with Pikachu and some of the other animated¹ characters.

But now the cute monsters can be collected outdoors using your phone’s camera, map and location tracker.

As gamers walk around their city or neighborhood, they can encounter and capture colorful characters. The characters are captured by throwing virtual balls into hoops² near the character.

Players can also look for landmarks⁴ around their city where they can collect more balls and other in-game rewards. Some of the landmarks are statues, museums, police stations and public transportation stations.

The game was created through a partnership⁵ between Nintendo, the Japanese company that created the original game, and a company created by Google called Niantic.

Many people are excited about the game. People who mostly stay inside have spent more time outdoors looking for the characters. The characters have strange names. For example, one is called a Sandshrew and another is a Doduo.

News reports say that people are meeting their neighbors for the first time.

People are posting their discoveries of characters in funny locations via Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Characters have been found on the New York City subway, in trash cans and in police cars.

The app even encourages people to exercise, since one element of the game is related to the hatching of eggs. New characters are born from the eggs that only hatch after the player has walked 2, 5 or 10 kilometers.

There have been some problems related to Pokemon Go, however.

One player in the U.S. state of Wyoming found a dead body while she was looking for a character along a riverbank.

In the state of Missouri, thieves set a trap for other players and robbed them.

The game is extremely popular. But some technology experts say the app unnecessarily requests access to private information, like emails and gamers’ locations.

The maker⁶ of the game, Niantic, says it will release an update that corrects this problem. The game is currently available for smart phones in the U.S., Australia and New Zealand. Other countries will have access soon.

And that’s What’s Trending Today.

Words in This Story

update – n. a change or addition to computer software that includes the most recent information

element – n. a particular part of something (such as a situation or activity)

landmark³ – n. an object or structure on land that is easy to see and recognize

virtual – adj. existing or occurring on computers or on the Internet

monster – n. a strange or horrible imaginary creature

cute – adj. having a pleasing and usually youthful appearance

animated – adj. produced by the creation of a series of drawings, pictures, etc., that are shown quickly one after another : produced through the process of animation

1 animated   

adj.生气勃勃的，活跃的，愉快的

参考例句：

• His observations gave rise to an animated and lively discussion.他的言论引起了一场气氛热烈而活跃的讨论。
• We had an animated discussion over current events last evening.昨天晚上我们热烈地讨论时事。

2 hoops   

n.箍( hoop的名词复数 )；（篮球）篮圈；（旧时儿童玩的）大环子；（两端埋在地里的）小铁弓

参考例句：

• a barrel bound with iron hoops 用铁箍箍紧的桶
• Hoops in Paris were wider this season and skirts were shorter. 在巴黎，这个季节的裙圈比较宽大，裙裾却短一些。 来自飘（部分）

3 landmark   

n.陆标，划时代的事，地界标

参考例句：

• The Russian Revolution represents a landmark in world history.俄国革命是世界历史上的一个里程碑。
• The tower was once a landmark for ships.这座塔曾是船只的陆标。

4 landmarks   

n.陆标( landmark的名词复数 )；目标；（标志重要阶段的）里程碑 ~ (in sth)；有历史意义的建筑物（或遗址）

参考例句：

• The book stands out as one of the notable landmarks in the progress of modern science. 这部著作是现代科学发展史上著名的里程碑之一。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The baby was one of the big landmarks in our relationship. 孩子的出世是我们俩关系中的一个重要转折点。 来自辞典例句

5 partnership   

n.合作关系，伙伴关系

参考例句：

• The company has gone into partnership with Swiss Bank Corporation.这家公司已经和瑞士银行公司建立合作关系。
• Martin has taken him into general partnership in his company.马丁已让他成为公司的普通合伙人。

6 maker   

n.制造者，制造商

参考例句：

• He is a trouble maker，You must be distant with him.他是个捣蛋鬼，你不要跟他在一起。
• A cabinet maker must be a master craftsman.家具木工必须是技艺高超的手艺人。