Smile, You're on Camera!——The Dilemma of Surveillance



本文節錄自《台灣光華雜誌》
九十八年九月第三十四卷第九期
錄影中請微笑——無所不在的監視器



  "Smile, you're on camera!" This warning sign can be seen everywhere: supermarkets, hypermarkets, banks, and apartment buildings. Even in parks and alleysm with no such signs, electronic eyes may be watching everything you do.
  At present, Taiwanese police departments monitor more than 105,000 surveillance cameras in Taiwan. This includes more than 7,000 cameras installed by the public sector at over 3,000 locations, as well as cameras in banks and convenience stores like 7-Eleven. If the cameras in commercial buildings and neighborhoods were counted, the number would exceed one million, which averages nearly one for every 20 people.
  Could it be that the heavily monitored world of George Orwell's 1984, written in the 1940s, with a plot about privacy being sacrificed in the name of national security, is playing out in our lives today? "It may be late by more than 20 years, but we are now entering the world of 1984," laments doctor, author, and Society of Wilderness chairman Lee Wei-wen.
  By the end of this year, the National Police Agency (NPA) will have spent NT$1.15 billion installing some 2,000 cameras in crime hotspots around Taiwan. These hotspots include places where vehicle accidents frequently occur and in the recesses of underground walkways.
  The eagerness of police departments to install cameras is due to their repeated success in cracking cases. For instance, in major crime cases, such as the rice bomber, the contaminated Wild Bull tonic incident, and the Nanhua Township double murder, cameras were instrumental in solving them.
  According to the NPA, in 2008, cameras helped solve 6,361 criminal cases, an increase of 71 percent compared to 3,715 in 2007. Surveillance cameras have become an essential tool for the police in solving cases, and police reliance on cameras is growing steadily.
精解字詞片語 


1. dilemma n. 進退兩難,困境
be in a dilemma  陷入進退兩難∕左右為難
例: Beth was in a dilemma when both Joe and Ed asked her out for Monday.
(喬與愛德都要約貝絲週一出去讓她感到左右為難。)

2. surveillance n. 監視;看守
a surveillance camera  監視器
keep...under surveillance  監視……
例: The FBI agents kept the suspect under surveillance 24 hours a day.
(FBI 探員一天 24 小時監視該嫌疑犯。)

3. monitor vt. 監控;監視;監聽
例: The police are monitoring the suspect's phone calls.
(警方正密切監聽該嫌犯的電話。)

4. install vt. 安裝,設置
例: We have installed central heating in the building.
(我們在這棟大樓安裝了中央暖氣系統。)

5. exceed vt. 超過
例: If your spending exceeds your salary, you will be in debt.
(如果你入不敷出,就會負債。)

6. sacrifice vt. 犧牲
例: Tommy sacrificed his free time to volunteer at the hospital.
(湯米犧牲自己的空閒時間,到醫院當義工。)

7. in the name of...  以……之名
例: Many crimes are committed in the name of justice.
(許多罪行都是假藉正義之名犯下的。)

8. frequently adv. 經常地
例: Sharon changes job so frequently that everyone thinks she's unstable.
(雪倫經常換工作,以致大家都覺得她很不穩定。)

9. crack vt. 解開,破解 & vi. 破裂
crack down on...  取締∕掃蕩……
例: It took Ted two hours to crack the code.
(泰德花了兩個小時解開密碼。)
例: The government is cracking down on drug dealers.
(政府正在大力掃盪毒梟。)

10. contaminated a. 受污染的
contaminate vt. 污染
例: Daniel ate contaminated food. As a result, he got sick.
(丹尼爾吃了受到污染的食物,所以生病了。)

11. instrumental a. 有幫助的
be instrumental in...  對……有幫助
例: Having good English abilities is instrumental in finding a good job in Canada.
(在加拿大,良好的英語能力有助於找到好工作。)

12. compared to/with...  和……比起來
例: Compared to his older brother, Henry is a really sweet guy.
(和他的哥哥比起來,亨利是個很好的人。)

13. steadily adv. 穩定地
例: Susan moved steadily towards her goal.
(蘇珊朝目標穩定地前進。)
單字小舖 


1. camera n. 攝影機;照相機
on camera  在攝影機前;入鏡
2. hypermarket n. 大賣場,大超市
3. alley n. 後街;小巷
4. electronic a. 電子的
5. location n. 位置,地點
6. commercial a. 商業的
7. average vt. 平均為
8. privacy n. 隱私
9. lament vt. 悲嘆
10. hotspot n. 可能發生險惡事端的地區
= hot spot
11. recess n. 隱蔽處(常用複數)
in the recesses of...  在……的隱蔽處
12. eagerness n. 渴望,熱切
13. repeated a. 屢次的,再三的
14. tonic n. 有興奮作用的東西;補藥
15. essential a. 不可或缺的
16. reliance n. 依賴
片語小舖 


1. at present  目前
2. be played out  上演;被實現
3. be due to...  因為……
中文翻譯 


  『錄影中請微笑』,在超市、賣場、銀行或大樓公寓,到處都看得到這樣的告示牌,甚至在沒有告示牌的公園或街頭巷尾,都可能有一雙電眼監視著你。
  目前全台警察列管的監視器有 10 萬 5 千多台,其中包括公家單位在 3 千多處裝設的 7 千多支監視器,以及各銀行、7-11 等便利商店對外的監視器。若再加上企業大樓、鄰里自行裝設的監視器,台灣監視器數量應已破百萬台大關,平均約 20 人就可以『分』到一台。
  難道 1940 年代末英國作家喬治‧歐威爾名著《1984》中,以國家安全之名剝奪個人隱私的監控世界,已在現實生活中上演?『雖然晚了 20 多年,我們還是進入了《1984》的世界!』荒野保護協會秘書長、醫師作家李偉文如此感嘆。
  到今年底,內政部警政署要執行完 11.5 億元的經費,在全台的『犯罪熱區』裝設約 2,000 支監視器。所謂『犯罪熱區』,指的是經常發生車禍的地點,或地下道等偏僻的角落。
  警政單位熱中於裝設監視器,實在是因為近年監視器屢成破案的『關鍵』。如白米炸彈客、毒蠻牛事件、台南南化鄉魚池雙屍案等多起重大刑案的破案,監視器都居功厥偉。
  根據警政署統計,2008 年台灣地區利用監視器而偵破的刑案有 6,361 件,較諸前一年 3,715 件,增幅達 71%。監視器已經是警察辦案不可或缺的利器,警察對於監視器的依賴度也與日俱增。



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