Ashura？ 阿修羅？

World Movies Channel昨晚播映日本電影《阿修羅城之瞳》，大概是除魔者愛上魔女的故事，古靈精怪，看了幾分鐘就放棄了。

《阿修羅城之瞳》的英譯是《Ashura-jo no Hitomi》，海外上映時更簡稱為《Ashura》。

阿修羅這名詞經常出現在神怪小說和漫畫中，在佛經中也有提及。我只矇矓地知道它是與佛教沾邊的魔者，但從來不覺得值得深究，更不知它的英譯是Ashura。

看看Ashura這字，不禁想起最近幾天電視新聞都在提及Shi'ites回教徒正在慶祝Ashura甚麼的，莫非此Ashura與阿修羅英譯同音同字，而且相關？直覺認為不可能，但兩個Ashura同時出現在我眼前又似乎過份巧合。

根據ReligionFacts的介紹，原來：

Ashura is an Islamic holiday observed on the 10th of Muharram, the first month of the Islamic year. The word Ashura means "10," denoting the date of the holiday.

Among Shi'ites, Ashura is a major festival, the tazia. It commemorates the death of Husayn, son of Imam 'Ali and grandson of Muhammad, on the 10th of Muharram, AH 61 (October 10, 680), in Karbala, Iraq. The event led to the split between the Sunni and Shia sects of Islam, and it is of central importance in Shia Islam.

For Shi'a Muslims, rituals and observances on Ashura consist primarily of public expressions of mourning and grief. Some Shi'as express mourning by flagellating themselves on the back with chains, beating their head or ritually cutting themselves. This is intended to connect them with Husayn's suffering and death as an aid to salvation on the Day of Judgment.

而根據科印百科：

阿修羅，是梵文音譯。意譯為非天、非同類、不端正、不酒神。它們是佛國六道眾之一，天龍八部神之一。說它是天神，卻沒有天神的善行，和鬼蜮有相似之處。說它是鬼蜮，可它具有神的威力神通。說它是人，雖有人的七情六欲，但又具有天神、鬼蜮的威力惡性。因此，它是一種非神、非鬼、非人，界於神、鬼、人之間的怪物。

看來，這兩個Ashura，一個來自佛教，一個來自回教，互無關係，只是巧合地英譯串法相同，而又巧合地同時出現在我眼前。

每天知多一點點。

預警

... “你入市了嗎？”這句話是近段時間來的話題焦點。同學、同事、親戚、朋友碰到一起，話題總離不開股市，和2005年談股“色”變的情形形成了鮮明反差。

... 一位証券公司的高管對記者說，什麼叫沒有泡沫的股市呢？股市的魅力就在於博弈，其本質就是存在泡沫的，否則怎麼會有機會？怎麼叫市場呢？“納斯達克沒有泡沫嗎？但是，這並不妨礙它成為最有成長性的市場，並不妨礙它醞釀了偉大的公司”！“該以新思維、新理念來看待今天的A股市場”，他笑著以此作為我們談話的結語。

The Google Library

Google's Moon Shot: The quest for the universal library (Jeffrey Toobin, The New Yorker, Issue of 2007-02-05)

The most comprehensive coverage, as far as I am aware, of Google's ongoing process to scan practically all books on earth into a searchable web database:

Every weekday, a truck pulls up to the Cecil H. Green Library, on the campus of Stanford University, and collects at least a thousand books, which are taken to an undisclosed location and scanned, page by page, into an enormous database ... At the University of Michigan, Google’s original partner in Google Book Search, tens of thousands of books are processed each week on the company’s custom-made scanning equipment.

In addition to forming partnerships with libraries, the company has signed contracts with nearly every major American publisher. When one of these publishers’ books is called up in response to search queries, Google displays a portion of the total work and shows links to the publisher’s Web site and online shops like Amazon, where users can buy the book.

Google will not discuss its proprietary scanning technology, but, rather than investing in page-turning equipment, the company employs people to operate the machines ... Google will not reveal how much it is spending on the books project. In 2005, Microsoft announced that it would spend two and a half million dollars to scan a hundred thousand out-of-copyright books in the collection of the British Library. At this rate, scanning thirty-two million books—the number in WorldCat’s database—would cost Google eight hundred million dollars.

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Google Book Search (beta) || Blog: Inside Google Book Search

Wikipedia: Google Book Search || Degree Tutor: Are Librarians Totally Obsolete?

Laptops 'used to cheat'

From The Courier-Mail (29/1/07):

THE University of Queensland is investigating allegations that postgraduate students cheated in a crucial exam last year by using laptop computers to communicate with outsiders.

Passing the Chinese language course means students received accreditation by the National Accreditation Authority for translators and Interpreters.

For overseas students, who pay about $10,000 a semester for the three-semester course, this boosts their chances of being allowed to remain permanently in Australia.

"It was open-book, they are encouraged to use computers and dictionaries but they have to do the work themselves,"

"Some students are alleged to have used wireless communication software during the exam to contact other people."

觀影讀書流水賬 28/1/07

讀書：
● 王軍 《城記》

觀影：
● 張藝謀 《滿城盡帶黃金甲》 (5/10)
● 荻上直子 《海鷗食堂/Kamome Shokudo/Ruokala Lokki》 (8/10)
● Jonathan Dayton, Valerie Faris 《Little Miss Sunshine》 (7/10)


又一描述美國病態家庭(dysfunctional family)的黑色幽默片。娛樂性豐富。

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重讀《城記》，是因為近期都在讀關於中國古建築的書。本書記錄的，是北京城解放後的滄桑變化史。京城如何發展，如何維護，城牆是否該拆，應否另建新城，大屋頂是否合適，行政中心應否聚集舊城區...？

書中另一主線，是以梁思成為首的一批海歸建築學者，如果在革命洪流中浮沉。誠如史景遷為費慰梅的《中國建築之魂》寫的代序所言，這是一個驚人虛擲的年代。長期的外侵內戰令這些專家發揮無門，期盼解放後可以盡展所長，誰知等待著他們的卻是更多的唏噓...

林徽因：「你們現在拆的是真古董，有一天，你們後悔了，想再蓋，也只能蓋個假古董了。」
毛澤東：「北京拆牌樓，城門打洞也哭鼻子。這是政治問題。」

本書資料極為豐富，幾乎所有幾十年來京城拆舊建新的，都有詳盡論述。唯獨對矗立在南向中軸線天安門廣場南端1977年建成的碩大建築物毛主席紀念堂《城記》卻隻字未提。存而不論的原因，不難想象。

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藍祖尉看罷《滿城盡帶黃金甲》，「走出戲院，突覺朗朗睛天，陽光好豔，好美，剛才的視覺迷亂，就像連吃三天山珍海味，胃口倒盡，最後只想清粥小菜了」。何不去芬蘭赫爾新基小街內的《海鷗食堂》，吃個飯團，跟店內幾位來自日本的奇趣女子談天，或是閒看街景？

● 《滿城盡帶黃金甲》觀後感： 以鳴得意
● 《海鷗食堂》觀後感： 清淡閒適的《海鷗食堂》

清淡閒適的《海鷗食堂》

嬌小的Sachie在芬蘭首都赫爾辛基的一條小街內新開了一間食店，名為海鷗食堂。儘管初期店內經常空空如也，她還是相信芬蘭人會和日本人一樣愛上飯團這種簡單又傳統的食物的...

是逃離也好，是嚮往也好，三位獨身的日本中年女子在老遠的芬蘭遇上。《海鷗食堂》的情節似有若無，總之是遇上了一些人，發生了一些事，生意好多了。電影最後一幕，是Sachie和另外兩位成為海鷗食堂店員的奇趣女子相互示範「歡迎光臨」的口吻和動作。



影片清淡閒適，但趣味盎然，直指人心，是電影中的逸品。鄭重推薦！

《海鷗食堂》電影網站

以鳴得意

今天才看張藝謀的《滿城盡帶黃金甲》。

片中輝煌俗艷的宮殿無疑非常顯眼，但要選最突出最關鍵的建築，豈怕非那高台莫屬了。

近幾星期來，都在讀中國古建築的書，看見片中的高台，即時想起趙廣超的《不只中國木建築》一書關於高台曾是皇侯競相建造以標榜實力和地位的一章，曾引用《國語.楚語》的一句：

高台榭 美宮室 以鳴得意

皇侯建高台宮室，以鳴得意。

張導不惜工本拍極盡奢華的高台宮室，不也是以鳴得意嗎？而且是得意忘形，跡近病態。

至於為何片名叫《滿城盡帶黃金甲》，眾說紛紜，莫衷一是。我沒有獨到的見解。

但「滿城盡帶黃金甲」來自黃巢屢試不第失意自慰的《不第後賦菊》詩則可肯定：

待到秋來九月八 我花開後百花殺 沖天香陣透長安 滿城盡帶黃金甲

他朝得意，誓要沖天香陣透長安，滿城盡帶黃金甲！

說《滿城盡帶黃金甲》是張藝謀的「得意」之作，貼切得很。

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談《黃金甲》，當然要涉及「黃金乳」。以國產片標準，本片真可算賣肉之作，但置之於全球電影之林，它的賣肉程度卻又只算小兒科。

《滿城盡帶黃金甲》的賣肉令我印象最深的，是其「大陣仗」。「大陣仗」是我們廣東人常用卻少深究的詞。我估計其詞源是來自軍事佈陣的。論到拍攝軍事佈陣的「大陣仗」，張藝謀在國產電影界絕對佔了第一把交椅，在《滿城盡帶黃金甲》中他亦盡顯身手。

我認為，片中皇帝的乳隊和軍隊的大陣仗是同出一轍的：眾多、整齊、隨時候命！

用郝建的話來說，就是張藝謀「把帝王的日常享受和非常時期的應變措施都拍成一場又一場的華美儀式。」（見《滿城盡帶黃金甲》：暴力意象與紅衛兵情結）

本土作家淪為翻譯書抬轎人

金石堂去年10大暢銷 僅1本土書:

金石堂指出，20年前的金石堂暢銷榜全是本土作家；20年後，20大暢銷作家中只有一半是本土作家，10大暢銷書中只有一本是本土書。金石堂甚至在出版紀事上表示：「本土作家淪為翻譯書抬轎人，名字多數僅見於推薦人欄，而非作者欄。」



說來慚愧，10大暢銷書我只讀過2本（丹布朗的天使與魔鬼和達文西密碼，讀的是原文）。

誰是佐賀阿嬤？

那有「持平」這回事

隔個大洋觀港事，似懂不懂之間，自得其樂。

話說廣管局向港台發出強烈勸諭，指出某集「鏗鏘集」報道同性戀內容時，內容不公、不完整和偏袒同性戀。

我沒有收看該集電視節目，對它是否「內容不公、不完整和偏袒同性戀」無發言權。不過，閱讀不同人對此事的不同意見，頗堪玩味。

剛讀了梁文道的「持平還是歧視」。

梁問：

到底甚麼才叫「持平」呢？假如拍同性戀一定要注入非同志的聲音，那麼拍老人是否也該有青年的說法，拍新界原居民也必須有非原居民亮相，拍大國崛起不能不談小國衰亡，談虐待動物則不得不採訪幾個主張虐畜有理的人吧。

梁答：

為甚麼廣管局不老實承認自己就是覺得同性戀有問題，而要惺惺作態地拿一個聽來很專業很中性的「持平」出來當說辭呢？

換言之，他認為廣管局持平為名，偏見甚至歧視為實。

這令我想起香港另一件近期大事件。假如，我只是說假如，某集「鏗鏘集」，以大部分內容陳述天星碼頭應拆的理據，相信也會有不少人（甚至可能包括梁文道）認為它「內容不公、不完整和偏袒拆卸天星碼頭」。

與此同時，也必然會有人跳出來說：持乜野平丫！你地班人點解唔老老實實承認自己就係覺得拆天星碼頭有問題，而要惺惺作態，用「持平」為理由攻擊港台？

那有「持平」這回事。不過是你有偏見，我有偏見，時而互不相干，各自表述，時而狹路相逢，互毆較量。

More on first and second serves

In my previous post, I said "I have never, ever watched any player who doesn't use different strategies for first and second serves", implying that all tennis players serve their second differently from their first.

Well, I was wrong. According to an article from Tennis SET (SET stands for science, engineering and technology), the young Venus Williams "basically used the same serve every time" in her first US Open in 1997. (Still, on the whole, Venus Williams serves a slower, safer second serve - see this example)

Another article from Tennis SET analyses the 2004 Wimbledom game between Jan-Michael Gambill and Sebastien Grosjean:

Gambill's first serve was working well but his second serve let him down. Gambill served 15 aces, he got 58% of his first serves into play, and he won 79% of his first serves when they went in. The problem was he won only 14 of his 45 second serves. What he should have done was to serve two first serves instead of one first and one second serve. That way he would have got 58% of the 45 second serves or 26 good second serves into play. He would have served 45 - 26 = 19 double faults instead of only 5, but he would have won 79% of those 26 second serves or 21 points instead of only 14.

The article concludes that:

The tactic of serving two first serves works best when the server is winning less than half the second serves and more than 70% of good first serves. There were at least 33 matches and possibly as many as 60 matches at Wimbledon this year where two first serves would have worked better than one first and one second.

The same reasoning would probably suggests that for some players, serving two second serves may be the best strategy.

Random thoughts on tennis

After watching almost every televised match of the Australian Open so far, I have gathered a few random thoughts on this sport, which may also have relevance to other sports as well.



1. Officiating by technology: Since last year, some of the major tennis tournaments, including this Australian Open, have introduced a video technology which is supposedly capable of determining where exactly the ball hits the ground. With this technology, whether a serve is a fault or not, or whether a return is in or out should be beyond dispute. I don't know how great this technology is. Let's assume that it is without fault at all.

Players are now allowed to challenge the umpire's decision and proceed to video decision. Of course, to prevent endless challenges, each player is only allowed to make a certain number of wrong challenges. Fair enough.

But the problem is, if you think the lineman's call or the umpire's overruling is wrong (and unfavourable to you), when do you make a challenge? Stop immediately, or play on and challenge after the conclusion of the point? And once the video decision is made, are there hard and fast and fair rules to decide whether to award the point to a player, or a reply of the point is necessary? The way I see it, players, umpires and commentators are still not too sure.

But more importantly, this video technology tend to underline the authority of the umpire. In some other sports, the umpires uses video technology to aid his decisions. In tennis, the players use this technology to challenge the umpire. In the past, the umpire was never wrong, because he/she had the final say. Now, he/she can be proven wrong by technology, and quite often too. One noticeable change in the behaviour of umpires is that they tend to be more cautious in exercising their judgement and overruling linesman's calls, since they won't look too good by overruling the linesman just to be proved wrong and overruled by video decision subsequently.

There have been lots of calls within the soccer community to introduce some form of video refereeing. I think the tennis game offers some good points for the authorities to consider.

2. First serve, second serve: I have never, ever watched any player who doesn't use different strategies for first and second serves. Strange, I think. Of course I understand that if your first serve is a fault, you have the chance of a second serve, whereas if this happens in the second serve you immediately lose a point. So, it is understandable that most players have a much stronger and riskier first serve, and a weaker but safer second serve.

But the strange thing is, whether one should use a strong or weaker second serve is ultimately governed by the probability of winning that point. Analytically, the probability of winning is a function having the serve "in", and winning the point when it is "in". Surely, there must be someone somewhere in this world which would have his/her first serve as the best bet for the second serve. This is especially so considering the unmistakable trend of having more big servers at the top echelon of the tennis game.

I really would like to see at least one tennis player who serves the same way regardless of whether it is a first or second serve.

3. What makes a top player: Time and time again, I can see what makes a winner is largely mental. Top players and not-so-top players are both capable of playing excellent tennis. But tennis is a sport where players have a lot of time to "think", between points, between games, and between sets. Mental strength is therefore of utmost importance.

We all know that top players do not panic when they are losing, although it is much easier said than done. They tend to be patient and try to execute a Plan B to turn the match around. This is exactly what not-so-top players are incapable of. They tend to become disheartened when things are against them, and their game go downhill from there.

What is more interesting is that top players also do not panic when they are winning! Often, I can see a (usually) young and upcoming player playing a faultless game against a top player, only to lose it completely when he/she is so damn close to winning the match. It is as if something mentally goes wrong once he/she senses victory.

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Hey, this is the 1,000th post of JTBlog!

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保證質量為名 加緊審查為實

2007年是電視劇質量年，廣電總局要求從2月份起的至少8個月時間內，所有上星頻道(各衛視頻道)在黃金時段一律播出主旋律電視劇。

為此，廣電總局對電視劇設立了四級審查制度，即所有省級電視台播出的電視劇提前一個月報省廣電局，最後廣電總局報送中宣部文藝局，審批通過後再播出。

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從2月份起的至少8個月時間內，大家唯有每晚如常收看翻版牒和下載檔電視劇了。

Two new year presents for myself

Bought two new year presents for myself today: an AV receiver and a DVD recorder with hard disk.

AV receiver - I have been using a Denon AV receiver over the past few years and it served me well. I am not fussy about AV quality and use the receiver to control all my TV/CD/DVD playing. But unfortunately, something happened after we moved to the new house a year and a half ago. It became very hot during usage, to the point that it would automatically switch off as a safety precaution after a couple of hours. It couldn't be switched on again until it cooled down considerably. But of course it took no time to become hot as a stove again.

Since then I have to use the TV on a stand-alone basis, and make sure that I don't listen to CDs or watch DVDs for more than 2-3 hours a day. :-(

Today I finally made up my mind and bought a new Panasonic full-digital receiver. It's too early to say whether it is capable of producing quality audio and video output. The most notable difference between this Panasonic and my old Denon (and most receivers as well) is how light the new gear is. It is no heavier than a DVD player or recorder. Most conventional receivers, however, are extremely heavy, easily weighing 20 kilos or more.

DVD recorder w/HDD - I have never owned any DVD recorders. But I have been debating with myself whether I should get one for recording the late-night football matches, so that I can watch them leisurely the next morning. Until now, I just got up and watched them live, even if they started at 2am, 3am or 4am, and regardless of whether I had to go to work the next morning. I do not watch any match whose result I am already aware of.

But this practice has become increasingly difficult for me. First, I am getting older and I notice it takes increasingly longer time to recover from the lack of sleep. Secondly, I have gradually lost the superhuman capability of sleeping soundly until the kick-off time and got up without the help of the alarm clock. Now it is more common to find myself failing to sleep well before a highly anticipated game (each and every Arsenal game is), and get up well before the kick-off time.

The second use of this new Pioneer 250GB DVD recorder with HDD is to convert my travel camcorder tapes into digital files for easy playback and editing. My laptop is unable to handle such demanding tasks.

One week down, another week to go

I am in the middle of my annual intensive watching of tennis games: the Australian Open.

TV broadcast here starts at 10am each day, usually with a game involving at least a big name, and ends with two evening centre-court major games for prime time viewing. I watch quite a bit of afternoon games as well.

穩定和諧 政權根本

鎮壓保證穩定 封殺促進和諧

觀影讀書流水賬 21/1/07

本週日夜忙於收看澳洲網球公開賽賽事，只看了一部電影，讀了一本書。

觀影：

Tony Gatlif 《Exils》 (8/10)

讀書：

費慰梅 《中國建築之魂 - 一個外國學者眼中的梁思成林徽因夫婦》

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《Exils》是一部新穎而魅力十足的尋根電影。對我來說，是一次全新的、愉快的觀影經驗。

World Movies網站對本片的簡介：

Seduced by the idea of freedom, Bohemian couple Zano and Nima embark on a journey from Paris to Algeria to discover their identities in the land their parents were exiled from. Carrying backpacks and little money the two meander through Spain and south to Morocco welcomed by the invigorating music of the area, the vibrant colours, smells, tastes and breathtaking landscapes. The couple’s carefree spirits and Gypsy lifestyle make the anticipation for their parents’ homeland a rewarding experience.

電影官方網頁（法文）

《伶人往事》遭禁 章詒和的公開聲明

二00七年一月十一日，在全國圖書定貨會開幕當日，中國新聞出版署召集了一個「通風會」。會上，副署長鄔書林先生以宣讀方式公佈了一份「二00六出版違規書選」，被點名的書裏，《伶人往事》列於三。鄔先生對出版此書的湖南文藝出版社說（大意）：「這個人（即指作者）已經反復打過招呼，她的書不能出，……你們還真敢出……對這本書是因人廢書。」接著，自然是對該社的嚴厲懲處。

鄔先生這裏說的「這個人」，指的就是我了。我是誰？我是從事戲曲研究的老研究人員，是中國民主同盟的老盟員，是退休在家的孤寡老婦。六十歲的時候，我拿起了筆，寫起了往事。先說的是父輩故事，後講的是伶人傳奇。第一本書被禁（即「賣完了，就別再版了」）。據說這是應中央統戰部的要求，其間無任何權力機關和政府官員對我本人實施侵害。這次，鄔先生沒有對《伶人往事》做出任何評價，對我卻實施了個人權利的侵害。我們的憲法有明文規定：「中華人民共和國公民有言論、出版、集會、結社、遊行、示威的自由。」他的「因人廢書」，直指我本人，直接剝奪我的出版權，而這是一個公民的基本權利。

我知道--在鄔先生的眼裏，章詒和是右派。好，就算我是右派。那麼，我要問：右派是不是公民？在當代中國，一個右派就不能說，不能寫了嗎？誰都知道，只要是個社會，就有左中右，其中的左派永遠是少數。我們這個國家是不是只許左派講話、出書？廣大的中間派和右派只有閉嘴。果真如此的話，我們的憲法應當立即修改，寫明容許哪些人出書，享有公民的基本權利；不容許哪些人出書，不能享有公民的基本權利（其實，現在某些左派和左派官員出書之難，並不在我之下）。鄔先生，您是什麼派？您代表誰？在就前不久，溫家寶總理在公開場合表示--希望並要求中國的作家和藝術家能講真話。言猶在耳哪！通風會就發出了這樣的聲音，宣佈了這樣的措施。新聞署是國家行政機構，這不是和國務院對著幹嗎？鄔先生，您到底要幹什麼？

借此機會，我想說明這樣一個態度：從提筆的那一刻起，我就沒想當什麼社會精英，想去寫什麼什麼「大」歷史。我只描述了與個人經驗、家族生活相關的瑣事，內裏有苦難，有溫馨，還有換代之際的世態人情。我的寫作衝動也很十分明確：一個從地獄中出來的人對天堂的追求和嚮往。因為第一本書裏的張伯駒、羅隆基，第二本書裏的馬連良，第三本書裏的葉盛蘭、葉盛長連同我的父母，都在那裏呢。「他們在天國遠遠望著我，目光憐憫又慈祥」。

再鄭重地重復一遍：我不會放棄對公民基本權利的維護，因為它維繫著一個人的尊嚴和良知。鄔先生的行為是違反憲法的！從精神到程式，他都沒有遵守。官場可以盛行「一致通過」，面對領導人可以做到「聆聽教誨」；與此同時，是否也可以給草民騰出一點兒空間：給他們留下一張嘴，叫他們說說；給他們留下一隻筆，讓他們寫寫。和諧社會的搭建不是靠勒緊，它需要的恰恰是鬆動。

前兩本書的被封殺，我均以「不在乎」對應之。但事不過三。這次，我在乎，很在乎！鄔先生，告訴您：我將以生命面對你的嚴重違法行為。祝英台能以生命維護她的愛情，我就能以生命維護我的文字。

遵守憲法的首先當是政府。您是一位高官，自然比我清楚。

章詒和2007，1，19

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背景資料（《世界日報》，19/1/07）：

香港《南華早報》透露，中國下令禁止發行香港女作家章詒和所著《伶人往事》等八部文學作品，並要對有關出版社進行處罰。

《南華早報》報導指出，所有本禁作品都是知識分子對中國現代以及當代歷史上大事的反思，這一禁令體現出中國當局仍在試圖控制人們對敏感歷史事件的討論。

報導稱，遭禁的作品除了章詒和的《伶人往事》之外，還有從個人經歷視角講述辛亥革命到大躍進的中國歷史的《滄桑》（作者曉劍）、有關民權活動人士姚立法經歷的報告文學《我反對：一個人大代表的參政傳奇》（作者朱凌）、講述解放戰爭以來一個普通家庭經歷的《一個普通中國人的家族史》（作者國亞）、《人民日報》退休編輯袁鷹的回憶錄《風雲側記———我在人民日報副刊的歲月》、回顧五零至八零年代中國大事的歷史叢書《年代懷舊叢書》（編者曠晨）、講述SARS期間一名女子因鐘情網路而放棄作副市長的情人的《如焉》（作者胡發雲）和家屬中國新聞界幕後人情世故的《新聞界》（作者朱華祥）。

《南華早報》報導稱，有關禁書令由國家新聞出版總署副署長鄔書林在上個星期的一次宣傳和出版工作會議上宣布，並在18日得到一名負責管理出版業的官員的證實。

（《南華早報/South China Morning Post》報導英文原文）

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章詒和的《伶人往事》，我至今只讀了《明報月刊》轉載的幾篇，和她前兩本書一樣，不管寫的人物是誰，其實都是章詒和在經歷了天堂、地獄、人間三階段後，為自己「尋找繼續生存的理由和力量，拯救即將枯萎的心」，下筆沉痛之極。

我在一篇寫《往事並不如煙》的文中說過，「沉醉於「活在漢唐以來未有之盛世」的人，讀讀《往事並不如煙》，或許可以平衡亢奮，清醒腦筋。我們不是經常將「一個不肯直面歷史，深刻反省的民族是個沒有希望的民族」這句話掛在嘴邊的嗎？」其實，只要讀讀章詒和的任何一篇文章，都可起「平衡亢奮，清醒腦筋」的作用。

董保綱在《北京日報》發表的讀後感：「時代可以造就英雄，時代也可以毀滅英雄，歷史常常給人們的內心帶來難以癒合的傷痛。作者忠實地記錄下伶人的悲涼，其實是在記錄一段沉甸甸的歷史，更是在記錄一段關於命運和良知的思索。風流總被雨打風吹去。但是我們不能輕易地忘卻，我們還要留下更多的記憶。 ... 我們對《伶人往事》的閱讀，並不僅僅只是文學含義上的閱讀，同時還是一段歷史的閱讀和一種厚重人生的閱讀。」

其他幾本遭禁書籍，我只讀了袁鷹回憶錄中關於批判俞平伯的《紅樓夢研究》的一段。據說該書被禁的原因，是泄露國家機密。（令我想起批評領導人為笨蛋卻被控以泄露國家機密的笑話）

順帶一提，《世界日報》報導有誤，章詒和不是香港女作家。但她確曾在小時隨父母在香港居住一段時間。她也曾任香港中文大學訪問學者，並在2005年應香港貿易發展局舉辦的香港書展之邀來港出席文化論壇。（詳見章詒和：心坎裏別是一般疼痛 — 憶父親與翦伯贊的交往和章詒和：集體回憶並不如煙）

至於她在香港住了多久，有幾種說法。維基百科綜合為：「1948年曾居於香港（灣仔與旺角親戚家）三年，在培正小學讀書，建國前隨家遷到北京定居」。但1948至建國前，何來3年？從「心坎」一文可知，1947年10月23日，「中共上海地下黨通知翦伯贊轉移香港」，章伯鈞「走得晚些」，「天氣更冷的時候，母親帶著我們也偷偷去了香港」。由此推斷，章詒和是在1948年初到香港，建國前回北京。章伯鈞倒可能算是在香港前後居住了3年。

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台版《往事並不如煙》（曾堯角落，8/10/05）
《往事並不如煙》自序（曾堯角落，5/5/04）

章詒和（維基百科）

Who really is the flock of dodos?

(Original: 21/2/06)

The evolutionists? The intelligent design advocates?

Let scientist and filmmaker Randy Olson guides your through the debate in his new film: Flock of Dodos: The Evolution-Intelligent Design Circus.

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Wikipedia has these to say about the now extinct bird Dodo: The Dodo was entirely fearless of people, and this, in combination with its flightlessness, made it easy prey. The name dodo comes from the archaic Portuguese word doudo, meaning "simpleton", doido in modern Portuguese meaning fool or mad. ... No one took particular notice of the extinct bird, until it was featured in the Caucus race in Lewis Carroll's Alice's Adventures in Wonderland (1865). With the popularity of the book, the Dodo became a household word: "as dead as a Dodo."

(Updated: 20/1/07)

"Photos" of Dodo (The New Yorker, 22/1/07)

A Mission to Convert

Scientists' interest in religion seems to come in waves. One arrived after the publication of Darwin's Origin of Species in 1859. Another followed in the 1930s and 1940s, inspired by surprising revelations from quantum mechanics, which suggested the insufficiency of conventional physical theories of the universe. And now scientists are once again writing about religion, apparently provoked this time by the controversy surrounding intelligent design. (H. Allen Orr, A Mission to Convert, New York Review of Books, Vol.54 No.1)



More Orr:
● Other Orr articles in New York Review of Books
● No Free Lunch: Why Specified Complexity Cannot Be Purchased without Intelligence (Boston Review)
● Darwin v. Intelligent Design (Again) (Boston Review)
● Devolution: Why intelligent design isn’t (The New Yorker)

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Intelligent Design from Wikipedia

我還會再去台灣嗎？

友好Hidy剛去了一趟高雄遊玩（照片、遊記）。

當我還在香港居住時，去過台灣至少五、六次，但每次的目的地都是台北，其他城市從未去過。更甚者，每次都只逗留台北市內，甚麼九份、基隆、野柳，都未去過，乘捷運到淡水已是極限。

那我為何多次去台北？一是近便、價廉、適合週末遊。二是誠品、阿宗麵線、和其他街頭小吃。

近年，少買了台版書，連帶去誠品的衝動也急降。我讀書雖雜，但有幾類書是基本不讀的：英文/歐陸文字翻譯作品、心靈/勵志、商管/理財、和兒童/育兒書籍。而偏徧這幾類圖書已佔了近年台灣出版物的大部分！當然，大陸出版蓬勃，也令我對台版書的價格有點抗拒。正是，書cheap人漸cheap。

三年前，我剛退休時，本來計劃了一次台灣環島遊。無奈，計劃有變，結果改去了愛爾蘭和西班牙。

如今我已離開香港，在澳洲定居，去台灣的意慾降至幾近零。

我還會再去台灣嗎？如去的話，我會去台北以外的地方嗎？天曉得。

修訂「橫寫直寫 向右向左 左翻右翻 沒完沒了」網頁

剛修訂了我的「橫寫直寫 向右向左 左翻右翻 沒完沒了」網頁。只有小改，大改欠奉。

新增內容一例：

維基百科：東亞文字排列方向認為：「雖說漢字圈的語文豎排和橫排均可，但草書等書體因為運筆方法等原因而比較適合豎排」。我認為此說倒果為因，有商榷餘地。不是「草書等書體因為運筆方法等原因而比較適合豎排」，而是中文自竹簡時代已確立豎排為主，其後逐漸產生以豎排為基礎的書法運筆法和審美觀。

現今大陸全面採用左起橫排中文，而且毛筆作為書寫工具已式微，硬筆橫寫書法遂應運而生。誰敢肯定百年後不會有人認為「草書等書體比較適合橫排」呢？（齊玉新：橫向空間的分割─沈鴻根硬筆行書橫寫研究斷想）

-- 橫寫直寫 向右向左 左翻右翻 沒完沒了 --

觀影讀書流水賬 14/1/07

觀影：
Tom Tykwer 《Perfume: The Story of a Murderer》 (7/10)
Ron Howard 《The Da Vinci Code》 (5/10)
Ang Lee 《Brokeback Mountain》 (7/10)
Scott McGehee, David Siegel 《Bee Season》 (5/10)
劉偉強 麥兆輝 《無間道Ⅱ》 (8/10)
村上正典 《電車男》 (6/10)
閔丙天 《韓城黑客/Natural City》 (5/10)

讀書：
趙廣超 《不只中國木建築》

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從《Winter Sleepers》到《Heaven》，Tom Tykwer的長片我一部都沒有錯過。他是現今歐陸導演中，功力不凡風格獨特的表表者。這次他身為德國人，執導德國（國際銷量）最成功的小說改編的大製作，當然值得期待。但是，他今次實在令我這長期擁躉失望了。《Perfume》其實也可說是是一部好電影-故事吸引、製作宏大、視像出色、導演札實、演員稱職-如果以一部big-budget電影來衡量，《Perfume》實際上是無可厚非的，正如張藝謀大導的大片無可厚非一樣。但我對Tom Tykwer的期望不只如此，期望他會有所超越。希望他下一部電影可重拾昔日的光采。

--- Cathy Yip：Das Parfum: Die Geschichte eines Moerders ---

對Da Vinci Code好奇的，還是看書吧。兩小時的電影，不可能包含書中環環相扣的「異端邪說」。缺少了這些「異端邪說」，《The Da Vinci Code》只是並不特出的thriller。

--- 曾堯角落：The two Aringarosas ---

我得承認，同性戀和美國西部牛仔都不是我喜愛的題材。而這也是我到今天才看李安的《Brokeback Mountain》的理由。

同樣地，我到今天才看劉偉強和麥兆輝的《無間道Ⅱ》，也是因為我對黑社會片已痛恨之極。但我得承認，《無間道》在這片種中，應是首屈一指，中外無敵手。（不知當我看過The Departed後，意見會否有變？）

《Bee Season》，不懂。

《韓城黑客/Natural City》，韓國科幻片，有紋有路，稍欠風采。

《電車男》，網絡世代的傻小子追女子故事。虎頭蛇尾。前中段清新可喜，尾段全落俗套。

「村上春樹的網路森林」部落格版

「村上春樹的網路森林」的部落格版剛已面世。

賴明珠：記村上春樹獲卡夫卡文學獎---讀者就是我的獎

（文中引述村上的德國譯者說「村上春樹好像邀請你說進來呀！然後，卻不讓你出去。」其實，對認為村上春樹難以接近的讀者而言，是否應該說：「村上春樹好像邀請你說進來呀！然後，卻不讓你進去。」又或者，「村上春樹好像邀請你說進來呀！然而，他不過帶你遊花園，卻不讓你登堂入室。」）

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The two Aringarosas

Watched The Da Vinci Code movie last night.

While I do not believe in god, I have respect for most who do. Respect is not something I have for the catholic church though.

And so you can easily guess why I was attracted to the Dan Brown book in the first place. Dan Brown may be a lousy novel writer, but the material in the book is fascinating. I eventually read it (the "illustrated edition") one more time.

For obvious reasons, the church and many religious groups found the book objectionable. But I don't seem to remember reading anything saying that they found the movie objectionable as well, other than the fact that it is a film adaptation of an objectionable book.

Why? I don't know. Because in some ways, I think the movie should be more "objectionable" to the believers than the book.

Yes, both the book and the movie "exposes" the terrible things the church did in the past, but do you notice Dan Brown generally has kind words to say about the church of today?

The bad guy in the book is the Teacher/Teabing, and Silas is used by him as a killer. Bishop Manual Aringarosa is desperate to save Opus Dei and sends Silas at the disposal of the mysterious Teacher, who promises a great way out for Opus Dei. In fact, Aringarosa is portrayed as a loving and devoted (but quite naive) person in the book. Neither he, the Opus Dei, nor the Vatican big-shots engage in anything sinister.

In the movie, however, Aringarosa is also a member of the Council of Shadows within the Vatican, which works to "hide/destroy the truth". He even tricks Dectector Fache into believing that Robert Langdon murdered Jacques Sauniere at the Louvre. By doing so, the movie hints that he knows, or has even played a part, in the killings.

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Related reading: Is Opus Dei the “Villain” of The Da Vinci Code? (John Wauck)

Nepal as you've never seen before

Royal Nepal Airlines has apologised to Peru after mistakenly using a photo of the Inca ruins of Machu Picchu to promote tourism in Nepal.

Peru's foreign ministry said today that the flagship carrier of the Himalayan kingdom, about half way around the world from the Andean country, had put the picture of Peru's tourism icon, Machu Picchu, on a poster under a slogan "Have you seen Nepal?"

吳冠中的漢字畫

據報導，吳冠中獨創的漢字畫最近展出:

從2005年開始，吳冠中先生就對中國書法的造型、字體變化以及漢字與人間形象的親疏因緣給予了關注。2006年他繼續創新，一年創作60多幅作品。《民族魂》、《紫禁城》、《情投意合》、《黃河》等一系列嶄新的藝術作品將漢字的內在底蘊與繪畫藝術交織在一起，別有情趣。《民族魂》三字極為厚重，似是一個整體，這就是為表現中華民族是拆不散、砸不爛的一個整體。



我向來喜愛吳冠中的畫作，對評擊他的言論一般不以為然。在我的吳冠中的「筆墨等於零」論網頁中，雖然沒有就題目發表個人意見，但對他的「脫離了具體畫面的孤立的筆墨，其價值等於零」和「忠於情則法無定」的說法是持肯定態度的。

不過，對於他「獨創的漢字畫」，我只能說筆墨不是必然等於零啊！首先，吳冠中絕對不是第一位將所謂「漢字的內在底蘊與繪畫藝術交織在一起」的藝術家，而且就畫論畫，「民族魂」的藝術價值我個人認為是接近零的。

-- 吳冠中的「筆墨等於零」論 --

觀影讀書流水賬 7/1/07

觀影：
Alejandro Gonzalez Inarritu 《Babel》 (8/10)
Pedro Almodovar 《Volver》 (9/10)
賈樟柯 《三峽好人》 (8/10)
張之亮 《墨攻》 (6/10)
Sergio Castellitto 《Non ti muovere/Don't Move》 (6/10)
Joe Wright 《Pride and Prejudice》 (7/10)
Curtis Hanson 《In Her Shoes》 (7/10)

讀書：
川上弘美 《老師的提包》

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我的觀影讀書流水賬新年首週大豐收！數量上，讀了一部小說（今年真要讀多點書，勿再沉迷上網了），看了七部電影。質量上，其中幾部電影屬超高水平。

未看Inarritu的《Babel》前，充滿期待，但又總覺有點不安。新作會在《Amores Perros》和《21 Grams》的基礎上更上層樓，還是會無以為繼？我的不安是多餘的！

Almodovar在《Talk to Her》後的《Bad Education》令我大失所望，幸而他在新作狀態回勇，回歸「畸情中見深情」的艾慕杜華本色。

不喜歡賈樟柯以前的作品的，恐怕也不會喜歡《三峽好人》。反之，他的捧場客（如我）一定會覺得《三峽好人》還是一貫賈樟柯的山西好人冷靜寫實風格。有浮誇奪目的黃金甲，也有默默過著still life的卑微三峽人，選擇權在你。

我對墨家思想所知甚少，也未曾讀過（或聽聞過）《墨攻》漫畫。看《墨攻》，覺得就是一部攻城守城鬥智鬥勇的影片。導演想帶出的關於戰亂、權力和理想主義的反思，一則過份外露，二則也未能好好發揮。張之亮始終是誠意有餘，眼高手跟不上。

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《Don't Move》和《老師的提包》講的都是「極不可能發生的刻骨銘心愛情」。對觀眾／讀者來說，能否「進入」故事是至關重要的。可惜，我無法做到。當然，我不怪自己，只怪Castellitto和川上弘美力有未逮。顧客永遠是對的嘛。

博客來書籍館 老師的提包
新浪讀書 老師的提包（精彩章節）

雙邊自由貿易談判：中國2007年外交的重要著力點

如果說2006年中國外交的一個焦點是能源因素，也許在2007年中國外交將會花不少力氣去處理貿易問題。因為在世貿框架下的多邊自由貿易談判進展不理想，各國已加緊雙邊自由貿協定談判以求自保。在今後一兩年內，這些合縱連横如何發展，對亞洲地緣政治的面貌將有甚大影響。(方德豪，亞洲時報在線，4/1/07)

Babe received 7 Golden Globe nominations?

No kidding! See screen capture below LOL ...



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The new year has started brilliantly as far as my film enjoyment is concerned. Almodovar returned to top form in Volver (I nominated his Bad Education as one of my top three viewing disappointments in 2006). Meanwhile, Inarritu scaled new heights in Babel. As I wrote earlier, if there is such a thing as a "Kieslowskian" director in the younger generation, it would have to be Inarritu. And Babel has lent support to my argument.