ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Benjamin Wallace - Author
Benjamin Wallace is a journalist and author of The Billionaire's Vinegar, the true story of the world's most expensive bottle of (possibly phony?) wine. He's been a contributor to GQ, Details, Salon and The Washington Post.

Why you should listen

A Washington D.C. native and a current Brooklynite, Benjamin Wallace is fast establishing himself a master of the brainy nonfiction thriller, rooting up feuds and controversies in pop and less-than-pop culture while buddying up with their embattled and larger-than-life personalities (whom he sometimes meets on their way down). He profiled conserative mouthpiece Glenn Beck for GQ in 2007 shortly after the pundit landed a controversial slot on CNN, and in 2002 looked at chef Georges Perrier of Philidelphia's then-five-star restaurant, Le Bec-Fin.

Wallace's orderly, deadpan writing style hints at one of his secrets: his love (and talent) for playing the straight man to the once-mighty in downfall, right as they go aflame in tragicomic hubris. (The Billionaire's Vinegar is simply a pleasure, not least to schadenfreude junkies.) It's easy to imagine him, the bespectacled wallflower, watching as brouhaha over a wine bottle once valued at $165,000 -- the highest price fetched for a bottle, ever -- culimates in a court trial that reveals at least two of its main characters, a wine collector and a wine expert, to be frauds. Or at least emperors with no clothes.

More profile about the speaker
Benjamin Wallace | Speaker | TED.com
Taste3 2008

Benjamin Wallace: The price of happiness

本杰明·瓦伦斯:幸福的价格

Filmed:
2,178,942 views

幸福可以被买到吗?作家本杰明·瓦伦斯以世界最贵的产品为例帮你找出答案。这些示例包括一瓶1947年白马庄园出产的葡萄酒,8盎司神户牛肉和传说中(臭名昭著的)印尼麝香貓咖啡。本杰明的评价将令你惊奇。
- Author
Benjamin Wallace is a journalist and author of The Billionaire's Vinegar, the true story of the world's most expensive bottle of (possibly phony?) wine. He's been a contributor to GQ, Details, Salon and The Washington Post. Full bio

Double-click the English transcript below to play the video.

00:16
I'm just going to play a brief简要 video视频 clip.
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我现在播放一段短片。
00:22
Video视频:
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视频:五万英镑
00:23
On the fifth第五 of December十二月 1985, a bottle瓶子 of 1787 Lafitte拉菲特 was sold出售
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1985年的十二月五号,一瓶1787年的拉菲特葡萄酒被售出。
00:29
for 105,000 pounds英镑 -- nine times the previous以前 world世界 record记录.
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售价为十万五千英镑, 九倍于前世界纪录。
00:34
The buyer买方
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福布斯先生。
00:36
was Kip基普 Forbes福布斯,
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买家是基普·福布斯,
00:38
son儿子 of one of the most flamboyant龙飞凤舞 millionaires百万富翁 of the 20th century世纪.
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某位二十世纪最声名显赫的百万富翁之子。
00:41
The original原版的 owner所有者 of the bottle瓶子 turned转身 out to be
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这瓶酒的上一任拥有者是
00:43
one of the most enthusiastic热情 wine红酒 buffs of the 18th century世纪.
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十八世纪最狂热的葡萄酒爱好者之一。
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Château酒庄 Lafitte拉菲特 is one of the greatest最大 wines葡萄酒 in the world世界,
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尚图·拉菲特是全世界顶级葡萄酒之一,
00:51
the prince王子 of any wine红酒 cellar地窖.
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任何酒窖中的极品。
00:53
Benjamin本杰明 Wallace华莱士: Now, that's about all the videotape录影带 that remains遗迹 of an event事件
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本杰明·瓦伦斯:现在,这段影片纪录了
00:55
that set off the longest-running运行时间最长的 mystery神秘 in the modern现代 wine红酒 world世界.
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堪称现代葡萄酒世界持续时间最长的秘密。♫
00:59
And the mystery神秘 existed存在 because of a gentleman绅士 named命名 Hardy哈迪 Rodenstock罗敦.
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而这秘密的存在起因于一位名为哈迪·鲁登斯托克的绅士。
01:04
In 1985, he announced公布 to his friends朋友 in the wine红酒 world世界
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1985年,他对自己在葡萄酒界的朋友们宣布
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that he had made制作 this incredible难以置信 discovery发现.
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他有一个令人难以置信的发现
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Some workmen工人 in Paris巴黎 had broken破碎 through通过 a brick wall,
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一些在巴黎的工人们砸破了一堵砖墙
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and happened发生 upon this hidden cache高速缓存 of wines葡萄酒 --
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从而发现了这些被匿藏的葡萄酒
01:16
apparently显然地 the property属性 of Thomas托马斯 Jefferson杰斐逊. 1787, 1784.
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这似乎是托马斯·杰斐逊的财产。年份1787、1784
01:21
He wouldn't不会 reveal揭示 the exact精确 number of bottles瓶子,
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他不愿意公开确切的数量
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he would not reveal揭示
exactly究竟 where the building建造 was
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他也不会公布建筑物的确切地址
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and he would not reveal揭示 exactly究竟 who owned拥有的 the building建造.
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他更不会公布具体的拥有人姓名
01:29
The mystery神秘 persisted坚持 for about 20 years年份.
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这个秘密持续了20年
01:32
It finally最后 began开始 to get resolved解决 in 2005 because of this guy.
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最终,在2005年有人揭开了谜底。
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Bill法案 Koch科赫 is a Florida佛罗里达 billionaire亿万富翁 who owns拥有 four of the Jefferson杰斐逊 bottles瓶子,
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比尔·寇奇是一位佛罗里达的亿万富翁,拥有四瓶杰斐逊葡萄酒。
01:40
and he became成为 suspicious可疑.
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他对此事开始质疑。
01:42
And he ended结束 up spending开支 over a million百万 dollars美元 and hiring招聘 ex-FBI前FBI
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他最终用一百多万美元聘请了一些前FBI
01:46
and ex-Scotland前苏格兰 Yard agents代理 to try to get to the bottom底部 of this.
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和前苏格兰场侦探彻查这一事件。
01:50
There's now ample充足 evidence证据 that Hardy哈迪 Rodenstock罗敦 is a con man,
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如今有充分的证据表明哈迪·鲁登斯托克是个诈骗犯,
01:53
and that the Jefferson杰斐逊 bottles瓶子 were fakes假货.
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那些杰斐逊葡萄酒也是伪造的。
01:55
But for those 20 years年份,
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但在那20年里
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an unbelievable难以置信的 number of really eminent杰出 and accomplished完成 figures人物
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这些酒被高价售出
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in the wine红酒 world世界 were sort分类 of drawn into the orbit轨道 of these bottles瓶子.
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并被给予葡萄酒界中极高的评价
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I think they wanted to believe that the most expensive昂贵 bottle瓶子 of wine红酒
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我想人们都想要相信
02:10
in the world世界 must必须 be the best最好 bottle瓶子 of wine红酒 in the world世界,
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全世界最贵的酒一定就是最好的,
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must必须 be the rarest稀有 bottle瓶子 of wine红酒 in the world世界.
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肯定是世间最稀有的。
02:16
I became成为 increasingly日益, kind of voyeuristicallyvoyeuristically interested有兴趣 in the question of
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我开始逐渐变得狂热于追求一个问题的答案
02:21
you know, why do people spend these crazy amounts of money,
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那就是:为什么人们愿意为葡萄酒或其他的东西
02:24
not only on wine红酒 but on lots of things,
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挥霍大笔金钱?
02:27
and are they living活的 a better life than me?
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这些人是否活得比我好?
02:29
So, I decided决定 to embark从事 on a quest寻求.
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所以,我决心寻求答案。
02:31
With the generous慷慨 backing后盾 of a magazine杂志 I write for sometimes有时,
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凭借一份我常投稿的杂志慷慨赞助
02:34
I decided决定 to sample样品 the very best最好, or most expensive昂贵, or most coveted令人垂涎 item项目
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我决定在数十个大类中
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in about a dozen categories类别,
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选出最好的,最贵的或人们最想要的事物加以体验,
02:43
which哪一个 was a very grueling严罚 quest寻求,
as you can imagine想像.
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你可以想像,这个过程何其痛苦
02:45
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
02:46
This was the first one.
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这里是第一件。
02:48
A lot of the Kobe科比 beef牛肉 that you see in the U.S. is not the real真实 thing.
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很多你在美国见到的神户牛肉不是真品
02:51
It may可能 come from Wagyu和牛 cattle黄牛,
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那可能是和牛,
02:53
but it's not from the original原版的, Appalachian阿巴拉契亚 Hyogo兵库县 Prefecture in Japan日本.
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但不是原产于阿帕拉契山脉的日本兵库。
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There are very few少数 places地方 in the U.S. where you can try real真实 Kobe科比,
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在美国只有很少的几个地方可以品尝真正的神户牛肉,
02:59
and one of them is Wolfgang沃尔夫冈 Puck's冰球的 restaurant餐厅, Cut, in Los洛杉矶 Angeles洛杉矶.
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其中之一就是位于洛杉矶,沃尔福冈·普克的饭店,CUT。
03:03
I went there, and I ordered有序 the eight-ounce8盎司 rib肋骨 eye for 160 dollars美元.
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我去了那里,点了价值160美元的8盎司肋眼牛排。
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And it arrived到达, and it was tiny.
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上菜了,牛排很小。
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And I was outraged愤怒.
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我当时气坏了。
03:11
It was like, 160 dollars美元 for this?
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这就值160美元?
03:13
And then I took a bite,
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然后我尝了一口,
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and I wished希望 that it was tinier更细小, because Kobe科比 beef牛肉 is so rich丰富.
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我但愿这牛排更小点,因为神户牛肉太肥腻了。
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It's like foie鹅肝 gras鹅肝 -- it's not even like steak牛扒.
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味道就像鹅肝- 甚至不能算牛排。
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I almost几乎 couldn't不能 finish it.
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我几乎就吃不完。
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I was really happy快乐 when I was doneDONE.
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当我终于吃光时,我可真开心。
03:26
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
03:27
Now, the photographer摄影师 who took the pictures图片 for this project项目
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现在这张照片是这个项目的摄影师拍摄的
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for some reason原因 posed构成 his dog in a lot of them,
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不知道为什么,在很多照片里放上了他的狗。
03:33
so that's why you're going to see this recurring经常性 character字符.
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所以你们会一直看到它。
03:36
Which哪一个, I guess猜测, you know, communicates相通 to you
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我猜,你已经知道
03:38
that I did not think that one was really worth价值 the price价钱.
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我觉得那牛排不值。
03:42
White白色 truffles松露.
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白松露
03:44
One of the most expensive昂贵 luxury豪华 foods食品 by weight重量 in the world世界.
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世间最贵的食材
03:46
To try this, I went to a Mario马里奥 Batali巴塔利 restaurant餐厅
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为此,我去了位于曼哈顿的马利奥 巴塔利餐厅,
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in Manhattan曼哈顿 -- Del德尔 PostoPosto的.
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它位于德尔 泊斯托。
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The waiter服务员, you know, came来了 out with the white白色 truffle松露 knob把手
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服务生拿着白松露和刮刀出来后,
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and his shaver剃须刀, and he shaved剃光 it onto my pasta意大利面 and he said, you know,
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他把松露刮成碎屑,撒在我的意大利面上,然后对我说
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"Would SignoreSIGNORE like the truffles松露?"
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“先生要一些松露吗?”
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And the charm魅力 of white白色 truffles松露 is in their aroma香气.
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白松露的迷人之处在于它的香味。
04:01
It's not in their taste味道, really. It's not in their texture质地.
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不是口感,也不是材质
04:04
It's in the smell.
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气味才是关键。
04:05
These white白色 pearlescent珠光 flakes hit击中 the noodles面条,
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当这些白珍珠色的小片落到面条上,
04:07
this haunting令人难以忘怀, wonderful精彩, nutty疯狂的, mushroomy蘑菇的 smell wafted飘荡 up.
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一股醉人的,香味浓郁的松露味就飘了起来。
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10 seconds passed通过 and it was gone走了.
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10秒后,没了。
04:14
And then I was left with these little ugly丑陋 flakes on my pasta意大利面 that,
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之后就只是面条上丑陋的小白碎片,
04:18
you know, their purpose目的 had been served提供服务,
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这样,他们的任务完成了,
04:21
and so I'm afraid害怕 to say that this was also a disappointment失望 to me.
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可对于我,这正是一大遗憾。
04:24
There were several一些 -- several一些 of these items项目 were disappointments失望.
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还有其他的例子,都是逐一让我失望。
04:28
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
04:32
Yeah.
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是的,
04:33
The magazine杂志 wouldn't不会 pay工资 for me to go there.
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那家杂志社可不愿出钱让我去那。
04:35
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
04:37
They did give me a tour游览, though虽然.
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但他们让我去参观了。
04:39
And this hotel旅馆 suite套房 is 4,300 square广场 feet.
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这间酒店套房有四千三百平方尺,
04:42
It has 360-degree-度 views意见.
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有360度景观房,
04:44
It has four balconies阳台.
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四个阳台。
04:46
It was designed设计 by the architect建筑师 I.M. Pei.
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由建筑师I.M.Pei设计
04:48
It comes with its own拥有 Rolls劳斯莱斯 Royce罗伊斯 and driver司机.
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配备劳斯莱斯和司机。
04:50
It comes with its own拥有 wine红酒 cellar地窖 that you can draw freely自如 from.
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有专署酒窖,免费任你享用。
04:53
When I took the tour游览, it actually其实 included包括 some Opus作品 One, I was glad高兴 to see.
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我参观的时候,我还高兴地见到酒窖里有“第一乐章“(一款名酒)。
04:57
30,000 dollars美元 for a night in a hotel旅馆.
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酒店一晚房价为三万美元。
05:01
This is soap肥皂 that's made制作 from silver nanoparticles纳米粒子,
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这是用含银的纳米微粒制成的香皂
05:05
which哪一个 have antibacterial抗菌 properties性能.
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有抗菌作用
05:08
I washed my face面对 with this this morning早上 in preparation制备 for this.
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今天早上为准备这次演讲,我用它洗了脸
05:11
And it, you know, tickled胳肢 a little bit and it smelled good,
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有点痒,很好闻。
05:15
but I have to say that nobody没有人 here
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可我不得不说
05:17
has complimented称赞 me on the cleanliness清洁度 of my face面对 today今天.
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今天没有人夸过我的脸干净。
05:19
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
05:20
But then again, nobody没有人 has complimented称赞 me on the jeans牛仔裤 I'm wearing穿着.
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再说说我的牛仔裤,也没有人夸过。
05:26
These ones那些 GQGQ did spring弹簧 for -- I own拥有 these -- but I will tell you,
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我的这条是GQ杂志的春装款——我自己买的——但让我告诉你,
05:30
not only did I not get a compliment赞扬 from any of you,
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不只你们没有注意到这条裤子,
05:32
I have not gotten得到 a compliment赞扬 from anybody任何人
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迄今为止从买到穿了这么久
05:34
in the months个月 that I have owned拥有的 and worn磨损的 these.
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没有任何人注意过
05:36
I don't think that whether是否 or not you're getting得到 a compliment赞扬
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我不认为被人夸奖与否
05:38
should be the test测试 of something's什么是 value,
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是衡量物品价值的标准,
05:40
but I think in the case案件 of a fashion时尚 item项目, an article文章 of clothing服装,
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但我认为,就时尚品而言
05:43
that's a reasonable合理 benchmark基准.
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那是一个合理的标准。
05:45
That said, a lot of work goes into these.
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据说,这一款做工精良。
05:47
They are made制作 from handpicked挑选 organic有机 Zimbabwean津巴布韦 cotton
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由人手挑选的津巴布韦有机棉花
05:51
that has been shuttle穿梭 loomed迫近
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用梭织机织出
05:54
and then hand-dipped手浸 in natural自然 indigo靛青 24 times.
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24次手工蘸染成自然靛青色
05:58
But no compliments赞美.
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但是没人赞美。
05:59
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
06:00
Thank you.
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谢谢。
06:04
Armando阿曼多 Manni曼尼 is a former前任的 filmmaker电影制片人 who makes品牌 this olive橄榄 oil
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阿曼多.曼尼以前是一名电影制片人,
06:06
from an olive橄榄 that grows成长 on a single slope in Tuscany托斯卡纳.
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他用托斯卡尼某处斜坡上特产的橄榄树制造了这种橄榄油
06:10
And he goes to great lengths长度 to protect保护 the olive橄榄 oil from oxygen and light.
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而且竭尽全力将其真空避光保存。
06:15
He uses使用 tiny bottles瓶子, the glass玻璃 is tinted有色,
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他用有色小玻璃瓶
06:18
he tops上衣 the olive橄榄 oil off with an inert惰性的 gas加油站.
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并在橄榄油上层注入气体。
06:22
And he actually其实 -- once一旦 he releases发布 a batch批量 of it,
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事实上,每制成一批
06:25
he regularly经常 conducts行为 molecular分子 analyses分析 and posts帖子 the results结果 online线上,
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他总是做分子分析,还把结果公布在网上
06:30
so you can go online线上 and look at your batch批量 number
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你可以在网上通过批号
06:32
and see how the phenolics酚醛树脂 are developing发展,
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看到油酚的演变
06:34
and, you know, gauge测量 its freshness新鲜.
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并测出新鲜度
06:36
I did a blind taste味道 test测试 of this with 20 people and five other olive橄榄 oils.
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我混和了其他五种橄榄油,和这种一起让20个人做盲测。
06:40
It tasted fine. It tasted interesting有趣.
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这种橄榄油口味独特、有趣。
06:42
It was very green绿色, it was very peppery胡椒.
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色泽清亮,非常辛辣。
06:44
But in the blind taste味道 test测试, it came来了 in last.
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但在盲测结果中,它排名最尾。
06:48
The olive橄榄 oil that came来了 in first was actually其实 a bottle瓶子 of
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排名最佳的橄榄油
06:51
Whole整个 Foods食品 365 olive橄榄 oil which哪一个 had been oxidizing氧化 next下一个 to my stove火炉
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是一瓶在我的灶台上放了六个月的
06:57
for six months个月.
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超市橄榄油 Whole Foods 365。
06:58
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
07:08
A recurring经常性 theme主题 is that a lot of these things are from Japan日本 --
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你可能会注意到
07:10
you'll你会 start开始 to notice注意.
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这个主题很多相关的东西都来自日本。
07:11
I don't play golf高尔夫球, so I couldn't不能 actually其实 road test测试 these,
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我不打高尔夫,所以我无法实际体验,
07:14
but I did interview访问 a guy who owns拥有 them.
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但我采访了一个拥有这套球具的人
07:16
Even the people who market市场 these clubs会所 -- I mean, they'll他们会 say
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我是说,即使是为这套球具做市场推广的人都会说
07:19
these have four axis shafts which哪一个 minimize最小化 loss失利 of club俱乐部 speed速度
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这套球具的四轴杆身可有效减少挥杆速度损失
07:23
and thereby从而 drive驾驶 the ball farther更远 -- but they'll他们会 say, look, you know,
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打出的球可以更远——但是他们也会说,
07:27
you're not getting得到 57,000 dollars美元 worth价值 of performance性能 from these clubs会所.
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你用这些球具不一定打得出等价于五万七千美元的表现。
07:30
You're paying付款 for the bling金光闪闪,
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你只是付钱买些那些闪亮的外表,
07:32
that they're encrusted缀满 with gold and platinum.
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而那可是由黄金和铂金制成的。
07:34
The guy who I interviewed采访 who owns拥有 them did say
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我所采访的球具主人倒是说
07:36
that he's gotten得到 a lot of pleasure乐趣 out of them, so ...
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他从中所获“乐趣“无穷,你可以想到。。。
07:40
Oh, yeah, you know this one?
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哦,你们知道这个?
07:42
This is a coffee咖啡 made制作 from a very unusual异常 process处理.
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这是一种用非同寻常的方法制成的咖啡
07:48
The luwak鲁哇克 is an Asian亚洲 Palm棕榈 Civet灵猫.
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鲁瓦克是亚洲小型麝香猫。
07:50
It's a cat that lives生活 in trees树木,
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这种猫生活在树上,
07:52
and at night it comes down and it prowls巡游 the coffee咖啡 plantations种植园.
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夜间它会偷偷爬下树,偷吃咖啡树上的果实。
07:56
And apparently显然地 it's a very picky挑剔 eater and it, you know,
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很显然,它们很挑食
07:58
hones珩磨机 in on only the ripest最成熟的 coffee咖啡 cherries樱桃.
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只选那些最成熟的咖啡果。
08:02
And then an enzyme in its digestive消化 tract管道 leeches水蛭 into the beans,
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而咖啡豆在它的消化道中可以吸取一种酶,
08:06
and people with the unenviable值得羡慕 job工作 of collecting搜集 these cats'猫' leavings残渣
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然后担任最不令人羡慕工作的人们会收集这些猫的粪便,
08:11
then go through通过 the forest森林 collecting搜集 the, you know, results结果
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挑拣收集来的“成果“,
08:16
and processing处理 it into coffee咖啡 -- although虽然 you actually其实 can buy购买 it
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将其加工成咖啡。
08:20
in the unprocessed form形成.
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虽然你也可以买没加过工的。
08:24
That's right.
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对了。
08:26
UnrelatedlyUnrelatedly --
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换个不相关的话题——
08:28
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
08:30
Japan日本 is doing crazy things with toilets洗手间.
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日本人疯狂地搞他们的厕所。
08:33
(Laughter笑声)
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(笑声)
08:40
There is now a toilet厕所 that has an MPMP3 player播放机 in it.
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这一个有MP3播放器,
08:43
There's one with a fragrance香味 dispenser饮水机.
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这个有芳香喷雾,
08:45
There's one that actually其实 analyzes分析 the contents内容 of the bowl
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这个则分析马桶里的承载物,
08:49
and transmits发送 the results结果 via通过 email电子邮件 to your doctor医生.
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然后用电子邮件的方式把分析结果发给你的医生。
08:53
It's almost几乎 like a home medical center中央 --
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几乎就是一个家庭医疗中心
08:55
and that is the direction方向 that Japanese日本 toilet厕所 technology技术 is heading标题 in.
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而这就是日本厕所科技的发展方向。
08:59
This one does not have those bells钟声 and whistles口哨,
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这个既没铃铛也没口哨
09:01
but for pure functionality功能 it's pretty漂亮 much the best最好 -- the NeorestNeorest 600.
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但就纯功能性而言,这个是最好的-鼎新600
09:05
And to try this -- I couldn't不能 get a loaner借用,
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因为没人愿意借我马桶,为了体验这个,
09:08
but I did go into the Manhattan曼哈顿 showroom展厅 of the manufacturer生产厂家, Toto托托,
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我只好去了Toto位于曼哈顿的展览室。
09:13
and they have a bathroom浴室 off of the showroom展厅 that you can use, which哪一个 I used.
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展厅旁就有一个厕所,你可以使用。我试过了
09:17
It's fully充分 automated自动化 -- you walk步行 towards it, and the seat座位 lifts升降机.
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它是全自动的-你走过去,坐垫就升起来
09:20
The seat座位 is preheated预热.
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坐垫是预热的,
09:22
There's a water jet喷射 that cleans清理 you.
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有水喷出来帮你洗干净,
09:24
There's an air空气 jet喷射 that dries干了 you.
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再有空气把你吹干
09:26
You get up, it flushes刷新 by itself本身.
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你起身,它就自动冲水。
09:28
The lid closes关闭, it self-cleans自我清洁.
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盖子合上,它就自动清洁。
09:30
Not only is it a technological技术性 leap飞跃 forward前锋,
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这不只是技术的进步,
09:32
but I really do believe it's a bit of a cultural文化 leap飞跃 forward前锋.
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我真觉得在文明程度上都是领先的
09:34
I mean, a no hands, no toilet厕所 paper toilet厕所.
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我是指,不用手,不用厕纸
09:37
And I want to get one of these.
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我想要一个
09:39
(Laughter笑声)
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笑声
09:43
This was another另一个 one I could not get a loaner借用 of.
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这是另一个我借不到的。
09:48
Tom汤姆 Cruise巡航 supposedly按说 owns拥有 this bed.
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汤姆·克鲁斯就该有这样一张床
09:50
There's a little plaque牌匾 on the end结束 that, you know,
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床尾有个小匾
09:52
each buyer买方 gets得到 their name名称 engraved on it.
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买家可以把自己的名字刻上去。
09:55
(Laughter笑声)
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笑声
10:01
To try this one, the maker制作者 of it let me and my wife妻子
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为了试这个,制造者让我和我妻子
10:03
spend the night in the Manhattan曼哈顿 showroom展厅.
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在曼哈顿的展览室待了一晚上
10:05
Lights灯火 glaring刺眼 in off the street,
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街上灯火通明
10:07
and we had to hire聘请 a security安全 guard守卫 and all these things.
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我们不得不雇个保安
10:10
But anyway无论如何, we had a great night's晚上的 sleep睡觉.
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可不管怎么说,我们那晚睡得很好
10:12
And you spend a third第三 of your life in bed.
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而人的一生有三分之一的时间在床上
10:14
I don't think it's that bad of a deal合同.
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我觉得这床还比较值
10:17
(Laughter笑声)
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笑声
10:18
This was a fun开玩笑 one.
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这个很搞笑
10:20
This is the fastest最快的 street-legal街道法律 car汽车 in the world世界
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这是全世界最快的可以合法在街上开的车,
10:24
and the most expensive昂贵 production生产 car汽车.
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也是最贵的量产车。
10:26
I got to drive驾驶 this with a chaperone伴侣 from the company公司,
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我得和该公司的试车员一起试驾,
10:28
a professional专业的 race种族 car汽车 driver司机,
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他是职业赛车手,
10:30
and we drove开车 around the canyons峡谷 outside of Los洛杉矶 Angeles洛杉矶
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我们在洛杉矶外的峡谷中驾驶,
10:33
and down on the Pacific和平的 Coast Highway高速公路.
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又上了太平洋海岸高速公路。
10:35
And, you know, when we pulled up to a stoplight红绿灯
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你知道吗,当我们在红灯前停下时,
10:38
the people in the adjacent cars汽车 kind of gave us respectful尊敬的 nods点头.
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附近车里的人对我们佩服得直点头。
10:42
And it was really amazing惊人.
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实在太棒了。
10:44
It was such这样 a smooth光滑 ride.
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如此流畅,
10:46
Most of the cars汽车 that I drive驾驶, if I get up to 80 they start开始 to rattle霸王鞭.
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我所开过的车大都在加速到80唛时就吱嘎作响
10:48
I switched交换的 lanes车道 on the highway高速公路 and the driver司机, this chaperone伴侣, said,
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我在高速公路上换道时,陪驾车手说
10:51
"You know, you were just going 110 miles英里 an hour小时."
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“你知道吗?你刚转到110唛每小时“
10:53
And I had no idea理念 that I was one of those obnoxious厌恶 people
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我自己都不知道我成了那种讨厌的人,
10:56
you occasionally偶尔 see weaving织布 in and out of traffic交通,
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在车河中钻进钻出,
10:58
because it was just that smooth光滑.
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因为这车实在太顺手了。
11:00
And if I was a billionaire亿万富翁, I would get one.
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如果我是亿万富翁,我一定买一辆
11:02
(Laughter笑声)
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笑声
11:07
This is a completely全然 gratuitous免费的 video视频 I'm just going to show显示
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我现在要播放一段纯属意外录下的
11:10
of one of the pitfalls陷阱 of advanced高级 technology技术.
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关于高科技弊端的影片。
11:12
This is Tom汤姆 Cruise巡航 arriving到达 at the "Mission任务: Impossible不可能 IIIIII" premiere首映.
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汤姆·克鲁斯到达"不可能的任务3"首映现场。
11:25
When he tries尝试 to open打开 the door,
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他开门时
11:27
you could call it "Mission任务: Impossible不可能 IVIV."
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上演了一场"不可能的任务4"。
11:32
There was one object目的 that I could not get my hands on,
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这瓶1947年产Cheval Blanc
11:34
and that was the 1947 Cheval白马 Blanc布兰克.
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是我可望而不可及的
11:36
The '47 Cheval白马 Blanc布兰克 is probably大概 the most mythologized神话 wine红酒 of the 20th century世纪.
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这是20世纪最具传奇的葡萄酒
11:40
And Cheval白马 Blanc布兰克 is kind of an unusual异常 wine红酒 for Bordeaux波尔多
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它是极不寻常的波尔多红酒
11:43
in having a significant重大 percentage百分比 of the Cabernet赤霞珠 Franc法郎 grape葡萄.
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主要用品丽珠葡萄酿成
11:47
And 1947 was a legendary传奇的 vintage酿酒,
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1947是波尔多右岸地区
11:50
especially特别 in the right bank银行 of Bordeaux波尔多.
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红酒具有传奇色彩的年份
11:52
And just together一起, that vintage酿酒 and that chateau城堡 took on this aura光环
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加上白马庄园, 两者的光环
11:56
that eventually终于 kind of gave it this cultish邪教 following以下.
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最终引来一批崇拜者
12:00
But it's 60 years年份 old.
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但这种酒有60年了
12:02
There's not much of it left.
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也所剩无几。
12:04
What there is of it left you don't know if it's real真实 --
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即便留下来,也难以辨别是真是假。
12:06
it's considered考虑 to be the most faked伪造 wine红酒 in the world世界.
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他被公认为世上造假率最高的酒。
12:08
Not that many许多 people are looking to pop流行的 open打开
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没有人愿意为一个记者
12:10
their one remaining其余 bottle瓶子 for a journalist记者.
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打开自己珍藏的所剩无几的美酒。
12:14
So, I'd about given特定 up trying to get my hands on one of these.
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我打算放弃试这酒的念头,
12:18
I'd put out feelers触角 to retailers零售商, to auctioneers拍卖,
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因为零售商,拍卖商那我都试过了,
12:20
and it was coming未来 up empty.
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全部落空。
12:22
And then I got an email电子邮件 from a guy named命名 Bipin比拼 Desai德赛.
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之后,我收到一封来自Bipin Desai的电子邮件。
12:24
Bipin比拼 Desai德赛 is a U.C. Riverside河边 theoretical理论 physicist物理学家
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Bipin Desai是加州大学河岸分校的理论物理学家
12:28
who also happens发生 to be the preeminent超群 organizer组织者 of rare罕见 wine红酒 tastings品酒会,
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他碰巧也是了不起的稀有品酒会的组织人,
12:32
and he said, "I've got a tasting品尝 coming未来 up
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他说:“我要办个品酒会,
12:34
where we're going to serve服务 the '47 Cheval白马 Blanc布兰克."
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可以尝到47年的Cheval Blanc,
12:36
And it was going to be a double vertical垂直 --
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而且还不止于此,
12:38
it was going to be 30 vintages葡萄酒 of Cheval白马 Blanc布兰克,
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届时会有30种其他年份的Cheval Blanc,
12:41
and 30 vintages葡萄酒 of Yquem伊甘.
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以及30种年份的Yquem.
12:43
And it was an invitation请帖 you do not refuse垃圾.
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这实在太吸引人了。
12:46
I went.
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我去了
12:48
It was three days, four meals.
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3天,4顿大餐。
12:50
And at lunch午餐 on Saturday星期六, we opened打开 the '47.
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在那个周六的午餐时,我们打开了47年的Cheval Blanc。
12:53
And you know, it had this fragrant softness柔软度,
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它香气柔和,
12:57
and it smelled a little bit of linseed亚麻籽 oil.
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闻起来有点像亚麻子油。
13:00
And then I tasted it, and it,
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然后我尝了酒,
13:02
you know, had this kind of unctuous油腻的, porty端口Y richness丰富,
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酒的口感丰富,如同带油的甜葡萄酒。
13:06
which哪一个 is characteristic特性 of that wine红酒 --
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这就是其特质
13:08
that it sort分类 of resembles酷似 port港口 in a lot of ways方法.
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很多方面类似葡萄牙甜葡萄酒
13:10
There were people at my table who thought it was, you know, fantastic奇妙.
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席间,有人大加赞誉
13:12
There were some people who were a little less impressed印象深刻.
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有人不以为然
13:16
And I wasn't that impressed印象深刻.
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我也不觉有太惊人之处
13:19
And I don't -- call my palate a philistine庸俗 palate --
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我是大众口味型
13:23
so it doesn't necessarily一定 mean something that I wasn't impressed印象深刻,
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并非我不识货
13:27
but I was not the only one there who had that reaction反应.
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而且也不只我一人有此反映
13:30
And it wasn't just to that wine红酒.
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也不只针对那种酒
13:32
Any one of the wines葡萄酒 served提供服务 at this tasting品尝,
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那天品的所有酒都一般
13:34
if I'd been served提供服务 it at a dinner晚餐 party派对, it would have been, you know,
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如果我在某次晚宴上喝到这种酒,
13:37
the wine红酒 experience经验 of my lifetime一生, and incredibly令人难以置信 memorable难忘.
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我一生都会回味无穷。
13:40
But drinking 60 great wines葡萄酒 over three days,
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但在3天里尝遍60种顶级红酒
13:43
they all just blurred模糊 together一起,
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口味就全混了
13:45
and it became成为 almost几乎 a grueling严罚 experience经验.
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而且还成了一种受罪。
13:49
And I just wanted to finish by mentioning a very interesting有趣 study研究
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我打算以一个有趣的研究作为结尾
13:53
which哪一个 came来了 out earlier this year from some researchers研究人员 at Stanford斯坦福 and Caltech加州理工学院.
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这是年初由斯坦福和加州工学院的研究人员发表的
13:57
And they gave subjects主题 the same相同 wine红酒,
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他们在相同的红酒上
14:01
labeled标记 with different不同 price价钱 tags标签.
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挂了不同的标价
14:03
A lot of people, you know,
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如你所知,很多人
14:05
said that they liked喜欢 the more expensive昂贵 wine红酒 more --
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说他们喜欢标价较贵的酒
14:08
it was the same相同 wine红酒, but they thought it was a different不同 one
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酒其实都一样,
14:10
that was more expensive昂贵.
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只是他们不知道。
14:12
But what was unexpected意外 was that these researchers研究人员 did
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但意想不到的是这些研究人员
14:14
MRIMRI brain imaging成像 while the people were drinking the wine红酒,
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在研究对象喝酒时对他们进行了脑部核磁共挣扫描
14:17
and not only did they say they enjoyed享受 the more expensively昂贵 labeled标记 wine红酒 more --
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他们不只是说更喜欢较贵的酒
14:21
their brain actually其实 registered注册 as experiencing经历 more pleasure乐趣
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他们的大脑也显示更快乐
14:25
from the same相同 wine红酒 when it was labeled标记 with a higher更高 price价钱 tag标签.
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一样的酒,只是标价更高。
14:28
Thank you.
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谢谢。
Translated by Cynthia Wang
Reviewed by Xin Chang

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ABOUT THE SPEAKER
Benjamin Wallace - Author
Benjamin Wallace is a journalist and author of The Billionaire's Vinegar, the true story of the world's most expensive bottle of (possibly phony?) wine. He's been a contributor to GQ, Details, Salon and The Washington Post.

Why you should listen

A Washington D.C. native and a current Brooklynite, Benjamin Wallace is fast establishing himself a master of the brainy nonfiction thriller, rooting up feuds and controversies in pop and less-than-pop culture while buddying up with their embattled and larger-than-life personalities (whom he sometimes meets on their way down). He profiled conserative mouthpiece Glenn Beck for GQ in 2007 shortly after the pundit landed a controversial slot on CNN, and in 2002 looked at chef Georges Perrier of Philidelphia's then-five-star restaurant, Le Bec-Fin.

Wallace's orderly, deadpan writing style hints at one of his secrets: his love (and talent) for playing the straight man to the once-mighty in downfall, right as they go aflame in tragicomic hubris. (The Billionaire's Vinegar is simply a pleasure, not least to schadenfreude junkies.) It's easy to imagine him, the bespectacled wallflower, watching as brouhaha over a wine bottle once valued at $165,000 -- the highest price fetched for a bottle, ever -- culimates in a court trial that reveals at least two of its main characters, a wine collector and a wine expert, to be frauds. Or at least emperors with no clothes.

More profile about the speaker
Benjamin Wallace | Speaker | TED.com