一款电子游戏是如何赋予南极洲一面旗帜的：英语精读讲义

Antarctica is Earth's coolest continent and most complicatedly claimed continent. 習語

南极洲是地球上最寒冷、主权声索也最复杂的大陆。

Yet, sadly has no official flag to unite her.

然而令人遗憾的是，她并没有一面官方旗帜来团结这片土地。

Nay, you might say, there's this.

你可能会反驳说，不，明明有这面旗啊。

And that flag is Antarctica-associated,

那面旗确实与南极洲有关，

but it's not official official and comes with an ownership asterisk we must attend to. 講解

但它并不是那种真正的官方旗帜，而且还带有一个我们必须处理的版权归属问题。

But first, Antarctica doesn't have an official flag

但首先，南极洲没有官方旗帜

because she's not an official country.

是因为她不是一个正式的国家。

Yes, humans have settled,

是的，人类已经定居于此——

depending on how much you want to stretch that word, 習語

这取决于你对“定居”这个词的定义有多宽泛——

on the ice sheet with scientific outposts,

人们在冰盖上建立了科学前哨站，

but each is operated by a parent country protecting their somewhat precarious claims.

但每个哨站都由母国运营，而这些母国都在维护他们那有点站不住脚的主权声索。

So, not really looking for a new banner to band everyone behind. 習語

所以，大家并没有真的在寻找一面能将所有人团结在一起的新旗帜。

Thus, there are no Antarctic citizens to officiate anything.

因此，没有南极洲公民来主持任何官方事务。

But, who cares?

但是，谁在乎呢？

People everywheres want to fly flags.

各地的人们都想挥舞旗帜。

And come on, 語氣意圖

拜托，

the continent has cried out for one right from the first in 1929

这片大陆早在1929年起就迫切需要一面旗帜了，

when an early research vessel flew a white sheet as a flag of courtesy for passing through Antarctica's waters, 文化背景

当时一艘早期的科考船在驶过南极水域时，挂起了一块白布作为礼貌性旗帜，

even though there were naught but penguins to appreciate the gesture. 用詞

尽管除了企鹅，并没有什么人能欣赏这个举动。

T’was done just for the fun of flying a flag with what the ship happened to have on hand. 講解

这样做完全是为了好玩，拿船上正好有的东西当作旗帜升起来。

But, since this rather literal representation of the snow-covered continent is not the most inspired design, 語氣意圖

不过，由于这种相当直白地表现“被雪覆盖的大陆”的设计并不是最有创意的，

it didn't catch on and penguins only spotted it sporadically on subsequent ships. 短語動詞

它并没有流行起来，后来也只有企鹅偶尔在后来的船上瞥见它。

And it stayed that way until 1997

这种情况一直持续到1997年，

with a curious development as a company Multimedia Corporation was developing a video game,

随着 Multimedia Corporation 公司开发的一款电子游戏，事情有了奇妙的发展，

The 3D World Atlas. And yes, for nerdy '90s kids,

那款游戏叫《The 3D World Atlas》。没错，对于90年代的极客孩子来说，

a digital atlas totally counted as a game.

电子地图册绝对算得上是游戏。

Multi Co noticed Antarctica's flag absence and deputized a designer to draw one,

Multi Co 公司注意到南极洲没有旗帜，于是委派了一名设计师来画一面，

who took a cue from the UN, 習語

这位设计师从联合国那里获得了灵感，

which on their flag views the world from atop,

联合国的旗帜是从上方俯视地球，

so Antarctica would be the same from abottom

那么南极洲的旗帜就可以从下方仰视地球，

and borrowed the same colors as a nod to neutrality. 習語

并且借用了相同的颜色以示中立。

So, it was through this game that this design debuted to young flag fans everywhere, 語法

所以，正是通过这款游戏，这个设计向世界各地的年轻旗帜爱好者们首次亮相，

including some who would grow up to end up on Antarctica. 短語動詞

其中一些人长大后最终去到了南极洲。

‘eh? and it's a great flag.

怎样？这是一面很棒的旗帜吧。

I'm not here to FUD it. 用詞

我在这里不是要贬低它。

But its origin does raise some questions of copyright. 語法

但它的起源确实引发了一些关于版权的疑问。

Unlike the original white sheet,

不同于最初的那块白布，

uncopyrightable, as it's nothing and old enough to be in the public domain anyway, 文化背景

它不受版权保护，因为那只不过是块白布，而且年代久远，早已属于公有领域，

not so with the '97 design. 表達脈絡

97年的那个设计就不一样了。

And while its creator makes no claim to copyright, 短語搭配

虽然它的创作者没有主张版权，

saying the flag is de facto public domain, 用詞

说这面旗帜实际上属于公有领域，

but what usually happens when a company commissions content is the company controls that content's copyright. 用詞

但通常当一家公司委托制作内容时，公司就控制着该内容的版权。

So, of course, on finding this out, 語法

因此，理所当然地，在发现这一点后，

one might think to email Multimedia Corporation about it.

有人可能会想到给 Multimedia Corporation 发邮件询问此事。

But, they went bust 習語

但是，他们破产了，

and now with no one to ask,

现在无人可问，

it becomes a question of who could claim to claim the copyright. 表達脈絡

谁能宣称自己拥有这版权就成了一个问题。

How hard could that be to find out? 語氣意圖

要查明这一点能有多难？

And in this moment, standing at the threshold of a research question that could easily cost months of my life, 習語

就是在这一刻，站在这个很容易耗费我人生好几个月时间的研究问题的门槛上，

I swore to myself,

我向自己发誓，

this will be a short script,

这将是一篇简短的稿子，

for serious this time, Gray. 用詞

这次是认真的，Gray。

So, I just let myself do a bit of basic Bing-ing. 講解

所以，我只让自己用必应（Bing）做了点基础搜索。

Ugh, that sounds very strange to say.

呃，这话听起来可真别扭。

And tracked Multimedia Corporation and their un-Bing-able, name,

我顺藤摸瓜寻找 Multimedia Corporation 以及他们那个在必应上很难搜到的名字，

through two potential lines of ownership.

查了两条可能的版权归属线索。

One through multiple corporate asset acquisitions and name changes that ended up in a Malta company that seemingly has nothing to do with video games, 習語

第一条线索经过了多次企业资产收购和更名，最终指向了一家似乎与电子游戏毫无关系的马耳他公司，

and the other line led to EA,

另一条线索则指向了 EA，

everyone's favorite developer dedicated to the Electronic Arts,

这个大家都爱的致力于“电子艺术”的开发商，

who was the original distributor of the Atlas.

也就是《Atlas》最初的发行商。

Under what terms? 用詞

协议条款是什么？

I didn't ask because I did not wish to open their evil eye upon any of this. 習語

我没问，因为我不想引起他们邪恶的目光来关注这件事。

And doubtless, neither of these companies have heard anything about the Atlas and its flag.

毫无疑问，这两家公司都没有听说过《Atlas》及其旗帜的任何消息。

So, let's all just promise to keep it that way.

所以，我们大家就保证对此保密吧。

Shall we? 語氣意圖

好吗？

Great.

太好了。

Now, we can finally talk about what happened next. 表達脈絡

现在，我们终于可以谈谈接下来发生的事了。

See, in 2018,

你们看，在2018年，

a new Antarctic flag, public domain, came on the scene. 習語

一面全新的、属于公有领域的南极洲旗帜登上了舞台。

It starts with the snow and ice white sheet from before,

它保留了之前代表冰雪的白色底布，

but adds above the dark skies that dominate the continent for six months a year.

但在上方加入了每年长达六个月笼罩这片大陆的暗夜天空。

A mountain in the center uplifts,

中央隆起一座山峰，

for unlike in the north, there's actual land under the ice,

因为与北极不同，南极的冰层下有真实的陆地，

and it casts a shadow to create the symbol of a compass pointing south,

山峰投下的阴影形成了一个指向南方的指南针标志，

which, as a bonus, makes this design mirror the northernmost flag on the northernmost continent,

作为额外加分项，这个设计与最北端大陆上那面最北端的旗帜相呼应，

just with flipped color placement for flipped pole placement.

只是因极点位置颠倒而颠倒了颜色布局。

Very satisfying and unique among flags,

在众多旗帜中，它极具辨识度且令人满意，

it creates a 3D effect that gives just a touch of technocool, 短語搭配

它创造了一种 3D 效果，带有一点科技酷感，

appropriate with how much tech was needed to conquer this coolest continent.

这与征服这片最冷的大陆所需的大量科技十分契合。

And it's totally not,

虽说完全不是这么回事，

but I'm just going to call it that 語氣意圖

但我非要说，

this 3D effect is also a nod to the 3D World Atlas,

这种 3D 效果也是对《The 3D World Atlas》的一种致敬，

connecting this flag to both of its forebears.

将这面旗帜与其两代前身联系在了一起。

Perfect.

完美。

I could talk about flags all day,

关于旗帜我能聊上一整天，

but I swore to keep it short.

但我发誓过要长话短说。

So, I just wanted to let everyone know that when you spot this rare flag,

所以，我只是想让大家知道，当你看到这面罕见的旗帜时，

it is of Antarctica.

它是属于南极洲的。

So, that for anyone watching this video there,

这样，对于正在那里看这个视频的人来说，

when you see your flag fly high,

当你们看到你们的旗帜高高飘扬时，

to know that others know how awesome it is and have that brighten a day out of six months of dark.

就能知道别人也懂它有多酷，希望能为这六个月的极夜带来一丝光明。