Digital skills: “You’re never too old to learn!” 数字技能：活到老学到老

英语大破解

Digital skills: “You’re never too old to learn!” 数字技能：活到老学到老

本集内容

学习要点

有关 “technology（技术）” 的词汇

边看边答

Who did Ron contact for the first time in 45 years?

文字稿

Ron and Jean were married for 56 years, but at the start of the pandemic Jean died of cancer.

罗恩和吉安的婚姻持续了56年，但在新冠疫情开始时，吉安因癌症去世了。

Ron Dalton
Three weeks after we got the funeral over with, lockdown came – it couldn’t have come at a worse time.

罗恩·道尔顿
“我们办完葬礼三个星期后，新冠疫情封锁就开始了，这个时机坏得不能再坏了。”

Stuck shielding at home for months, Ron faced his grief alone until he decided to learn how to video chat.

数月以来，罗恩只能在家屏蔽隔离，独自面对丧妻之痛，直到他决定学习如何视频聊天。

Ron Dalton
To be quite honest, without my iPad I’d have been totally lost. In my particular position, it is brilliant because I can’t walk, so it’s been a godsend to be able to talk to people, you know, without going out of my house.

罗恩·道尔顿
“老实说，如果没有我的苹果平板电脑，我会不知所措的。考虑到我的个人情况，这太棒了，因为我走不动路，所以不出家门就能和人交谈，真是令我喜出望外。”

He was remotely taught digital skills by local charities in Leeds [in the north of England]. After never having touched a tablet device before last year, he’s now used his to find bereavement counselling and chat to people.

在英格兰北部城市利兹当地慈善机构的帮助下，他远程学习了数字技能。在去年之前，他从未接触过平板电脑设备，而现在他可以用自己的平板电脑寻找丧亲心理咨询服务，并和人聊天。

Ron Dalton
At least you’re not talking to faceless people – when you talk to them on the phone, you can’t imagine who you’re really talking to. I’ve got in touch with a cousin of mine in Kent [UK], who I haven’t spoke [spoken] to for 45 years, and I’ve got through to her on Messenger and all you do is press a camera thing and it gets you through. Unbelievable.

罗恩·道尔顿
“起码在视频聊天时，你不会连对方的脸都看不到，但在打电话时，你想象不出到底是在和谁讲话。我和住在肯特郡的一个表亲取得了联系，我已经45年没和她说过话了，我用通讯软件 Messenger 联系到了她，只需要按下一个摄像头按钮，就能通话。真是太神奇了！”

Laxmi Gopal, BBC reporter
And Ron’s experience reflects a trend among his generation. An Ofcom study found the proportion of over-65s using video calling nearly tripled after lockdown, and the Leeds branch of Age UK says during the pandemic it has seen a doubling in demand for its digital support services among older people.

拉克希米·戈帕尔 BBC通讯员
罗恩的经历反映了他那一代人的趋势。英国通讯管理局的一项研究发现，65岁以上人士使用视频通话的比例是疫情封锁前的近三倍，另外，英国老年人慈善机构 Age UK 利兹分会表示，疫情期间老年人对其提供的数字支持服务的需求翻了一番。

Of course, it is not about replacing face-to-face contact, but simply offering more options.

当然，这并不是要取代面对面的接触，而只是给人们提供更多的选择。

Lee Potter, Age UK, Leeds
It is about giving people that choice. We’re trying to give people the skills to… and the access to the devices and the connectivity which are all challenges that we face, but if we can encourage people to give it a go so they can see what it’s like and to use it if they need to.

李·波特英国老年人慈善机构 Age UK 利兹分会
“这样做是为了给人们提供选择。我们在想办法让人们拥有这类技能……让人们获取这些设备和网络连接，这些都是我们面临的挑战，但我们还是想鼓励人们尝试一下，他们可以亲身体验一下，从而在有需要时使用这些技术。”

There’s work to be done to ensure wider access to the internet and devices for the older community, but the past year of lockdown has at least encouraged more engagement. And the final thought from Ron on Zoom…

要确保老年群体中有更多人能连接互联网和相关设备，还需要更多的努力，但过去一年的疫情封锁至少鼓励了更多人参与其中。透过视频通讯软件 Zoom，来听一听罗恩的总结。

Ron Dalton
You’re never too old to learn – it’s as simple as that, if I could [can] learn, anybody can.

罗恩·道尔顿
“活到老学到老，就这么简单，如果连我都能学，那任何人都可以。”