全通翻譯/翻譯社

It's no secret that modern cat owners are crazy about their furry friends. This is nothing compared to Ancient Egypt, though. In fact, just dreaming about a cat was a lucky sign back then. Cats were so valued that they were treated like gods and symbols of good fortune. At that time, cats were used to protect farms and stored food from mice and snakes. As a way to say thanks, Egyptians made cats an important part of their religion. They prayed to Bast, a cat goddess that represented motherhood and protection.

現代的貓主人都為他們的愛貓瘋狂，這不算是什麼祕密。不過跟古埃及比起來，可說是小巫見大巫。事實上，在古埃及光是夢到一隻貓就是幸運的徵兆了。貓十分受到當代人的珍視，甚至還受到神明級的禮遇以及被視為好運的象徵。在當時，貓被用來保護農田及存糧不受老鼠和蛇的侵襲。埃及人將貓列為他們宗教裡重要的一份子，以此做為感謝牠們的一種方式。他們信奉芭絲特，也就是代表母親身分和保護的貓女神。

Before the turn of the 20th century, Americans had to rely on horse-drawn carriages or steam trains to travel long distances. But with the invention of the automobile, they began setting out on long drives in the early 1900s. Route 66, a road that stretches from Chicago, Illinois, to Santa Monica, California, was one of the country's first highways. It came to represent America's love of the automobile and checking out the huge country. As the decades rolled on, Route 66 found its way into American culture.

在邁入二十世紀之前，美國人長途旅行必須仰賴馬車或是蒸氣火車。但隨著汽車的發明，人們在二十世紀初開始動身踏上長途旅行。66號公路是全國最早的公路之一，它是一條從伊利諾州芝加哥市延續到加州聖塔莫尼卡市的公路。它象徵了美國人對汽車以及欣賞這個泱泱大國的熱愛。幾十年過去了，66號公路就變成了美國文化的一部分。 

S: Stan　　C: Coraline
Coraline and Stan are getting ready to leave work.

A single human finger bone from at least 86,000 years ago points to Arabia as a key destination for Stone Age excursions out of Africa that allowed people to rapidly spread across Asia.

至少8萬6000年前的一件人類手指骨骼顯示，阿拉伯半島是石器時代人類遷出非洲的重要地點，人類藉此迅速擴散至亞洲。

Excavations at Al Wusta, a site in Saudi Arabia’s Nefud desert, produced this diminutive discovery. It’s the oldest known Homo sapiens fossil outside of Africa and the narrow strip of the Middle East that joins Africa with Asia, based on dating of the bone itself, says a team led by archaeologists Huw Groucutt and Michael Petraglia.

A: Ashley　　V: Veronica

The British Open is the world's oldest Major championship event in professional golf. It is also the only one played outside of the United States. This tournament rotates between nine courses in England and Scotland, with a different one every year. All of these courses are links, so they have very few trees and are played on the coasts. This can make for some very interesting weather conditions. The players who play in the morning sometimes have a different experience from those who tee off later in the afternoon due to changing winds.

英國公開賽是全球最古老的職業高爾夫球錦標賽事。這也是唯一在美國境外打的賽事。這個比賽在英格蘭與蘇格蘭的九個球場間輪替，每年都在不同的場地比賽。所有的球場都是濱海球場，所以沒有太多的樹，而且是在海岸邊進行。這會造成某些很有趣的天氣狀況。由於風向的改變，在早上打的球員有時會有與那些下午才開打的選手完全不一樣的體驗。

The Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris, visited by as many as 14 million people a year, is falling apart. The gargoyles are losing their teeth, and their claws are coming off. The beautiful Gothic arches are in danger of falling, too. What can be done to save this aging monument? According to the Archbishop of Paris, money is the only answer. He's asking for 100 million euros to help bring the cathedral up to code. The 850-year-old building is showing its age.

每年有一千四百萬人參觀的巴黎聖母主教座堂（編按：這是巴黎聖母院的正式名稱）正在崩壞中。滴水嘴獸（又稱雨漏）的牙齒沒了，它們的爪子也脫落了。

When Japan became a more peaceful, modern country in the 1800s, ninjas weren’t needed anymore. Although they had disappeared from the battlefield, ninjas stayed alive in people’s minds. Artists wrote about them in plays, comic books, and TV shows. The love of ninjas eventually spread to the US and other countries. Ninjas were used as the main characters in classic video games like Shinobi and Mortal Kombat. Their popularity continued to rise after the popular cartoon, Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles, introduced ninjas to millions of children around the world.