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The Noodle King 泡面之父－安藤百福

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Walk into any convenient store in the world, and there they are: the efforts of one man prominently displayed on the shelves for the hungry, on-the-go masses. The innovative man is Momofuku Ando, and this year, at the age of 96, he is finally stepping back from the instant noodle empire he has created.

走进全世界的任何一家便利超商，你就可以看到它们：某个人的辛勤结果，显着地摆在货架上，供那些饥饿、来去匆匆的顾客取用。这个充满创意的人便是安藤百福(Monofuku Ando)。今年，以96岁的高龄，他终于离开一手建立的方便面王国。

Ando was born in the south of Taiwan in 1910. His parents died when he was just an infant, so he went to live with his grandparents, who ran a small dress shop and allowed him to work there. Every time he made a sale, he could feel the spirit of an industrialist growing within him.

安藤在1910年诞生于台湾南部。当他还是个婴孩的时候，双亲便去世了，所以他同祖父母住在一起。他的祖父母开了间小服饰店，并让他在那里工作。每当完成一项交易，他便感受到企业家精神在他内心深处滋长。

In his mid-thirties, inspiration struck Ando as he noticed the long lines of people who were always waiting outside noodle shops. “I invented instant noodle ….. because I could imagine how happy people would be if I delivered to households Ramen they can eat any time, anywhere and safely,” he said. However, Ando struggled for over a year to bring his idea to life. He would wake up each day at 5 a.m., and go to the hut in the backyard of his house, where he would work zealously to develop “instant noodles.” He would often work until as late as 2 a.m., only to produce failure after failure.

在他三十多岁的时候，看到面店外面总有一长排的人龙时，他顿有所感。他说：「我发明方便面……是因为，如果我可以让大家在任何时间、任何地方可以吃得到卫生的拉面，他们一定会很高兴。」但是安藤也是经历过一年的辛苦奋斗才能将他的想法付诸实行。每天早上五点，安藤便起床，到后院的小屋热情地进行他的「方便面研究」。许多时候，他都工作到凌晨2点，但面对的却是一次又一次的失败。

But hard work and exhaustion eventually paid off. Today Ando’s empire generates NT$94.5 billion in sales every year. His story is an inspiration to those who may think they are too old to try something new. “There is no such thing as late in life,” says the triumphant Ando. “You might succeed, you might fail, but at least it’s better to start a race rather than never to have run at all.

但努力和精疲力尽终于有了回馈。今天安藤的方便面王国每年销售量达到新台币945亿元。对于许多认为自己已经太老而不能尝试新事物的人来说，安藤的故事是个启发。「生命当中没有所谓太迟的事。」这个胜利者安藤如此说：「你可能会成功，也可能会失败，但至少，能够参与一项比赛总是比从来没有参与过的好。」

−by Joe Henley”

Vocabulary

prominently [ˋprɑmənəntlɪ] adv. 显著地；重要地

display [dɪˋsple] v. 陈列；展出

innovative [ˋɪno͵vetɪv] adj. 创新的

exhaustion [ɪgˋzɔstʃən] n. 精疲力竭

generate [ˋdʒɛnə͵ret] v. 产生，发生

More Information

effort [ˋɛfɚt] n. 努力的成果

on-the-go: 活跃的, 忙碌的 constantly busy or active

masses [ˋmæsɪz] n. 平民；群众

step back: 后退，退居不重要的部位  to move away

infant [ˋɪnfənt] n. 婴儿

industrialist [ɪnˋdʌstriəlɪst] n. 企业家；工业家；实业家

strike [straɪk] v. 突然想到

household [ˋhaʊs͵hold] adj. 家庭的；家用的

bring ideas to life  想法付诸实行

hut [hʌt] n.（简陋的）小屋

zealously [ˋzɛləslɪ] adv. 热心地；积极地

pay off: 【口】(尤指冒风险的政策、做法等)带来好结果, 成功, 行得通  to yield profits; to result in benefits

Reading Questions

1.   Based on the article, how could we characterize Mr. Ando’s business?

A.  That it copied and improved upon someone else’s idea.

B.  That it has rescued the lives of millions of people in many countries.

C.  That it has reformed food markets all over the world.

D.  That it started small but has turned into a highly profitable venture.

2.   Which of the following statement is NOT true about Mr. Ando?

A.  He was orphaned at a very young age and was raised by family elders.

B.  He finds it ironic that his product has become so popular.

C.  He does not buy the idea that age should stop us from pursuing our dreams.

D.  He created instant noodles and has been a very successful business.

3.   Which of the following would Ando probably NOT believe in?

A.  It’s never too late.

B.  Practice makes perfect.

C.  Too little, too late.

D.  Try and you’ll succeed.

improve upon: 對…作出改進 make better

Answer