2007年VOA标准英语-Computer Sales Seek to Aid Developing World

By Paul Sisco
Washington
26 September 2007
 

Nicholas Negroponte is the founding director of the Media Laboratory at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.  And he is chairman of a nonprofit organization aiming to provide inexpensive computers to children in the developing world. But perhaps more than anything else, Nicholas Negroponte is a determined¹ optimist².  VOA's Paul Sisco has more.

Nicholas Negroponte has a grand vision for the future. Give all the world's children a laptop computer, Internet access, and in 10 years. "Poverty will be eliminated, and there will be world peace," he adds.

Negroponte chairs a nonprofit organization called One Laptop Per Child. It aims to educate the world's poorest children with these durable³ low-cost, energy efficient laptops.

Fortune Magazine's David Kirkpatrick says, "It really is the first time that anybody has built a machine specifically for poor kids in quantity."

Production costs of the so called $100 laptops are actually around $188.  And for two weeks in November, North Americans will be able to buy two for about $400. The plan announced earlier this week is called "Give One Get One." For every laptop bought, one is shipped to a child in the developing world.  The buyer gets a $200 tax deduction⁴. The computers can be hand cranked and charged with solar power. That led one boy in a focus group to say they even prevent global warming. 

(Children)
'You can use it for your homework.'
'You can do kid stuff on it.'
'And I can pick it up. See??'

Nicholas Negroponte added, "If you think of it as a laptop, it can be viewed as a luxury.  If you think of it as education, it's not a luxury."

Several governments have shown interest in the computers. Negroponte says he believes the new marketing⁵ effort will prompt those governments to buy the computers.

1 determined   

adj.坚定的；有决心的

参考例句：

• I have determined on going to Tibet after graduation.我已决定毕业后去西藏。
• He determined to view the rooms behind the office.他决定查看一下办公室后面的房间。

2 optimist   

n.乐观的人，乐观主义者

参考例句：

• We are optimist and realist.我们是乐观主义者，又是现实主义者。
• Peter,ever the optimist,said things were bound to improve.一向乐观的皮特说，事情必定是会好转的。

3 durable   

adj.持久的，耐久的

参考例句：

• This raincoat is made of very durable material.这件雨衣是用非常耐用的料子做的。
• They frequently require more major durable purchases.他们经常需要购买耐用消费品。

4 deduction   

n.减除，扣除，减除额；推论，推理，演绎

参考例句：

• No deduction in pay is made for absence due to illness.因病请假不扣工资。
• His deduction led him to the correct conclusion.他的推断使他得出正确的结论。

5 marketing   

n.行销，在市场的买卖，买东西

参考例句：

• They are developing marketing network.他们正在发展销售网络。
• He often goes marketing.他经常去市场做生意。