The Sleeper|变化无穷的溜溜球

The Sleeper 变化无穷的溜溜球

by Li Chen

Why would people want to play with a toy that sleeps?

为什么会有人想玩『睡觉』的玩具呢？

Can you walk the dog, split the atom, or rock the cradle? If you can, then you're one of the millions of people that are _(1)_ about yo-yos and the variety of tricks performed with them. Made of a spool that rises and falls down a length of string, the yo-yo is a hand-held toy that has seen its fair share of _(2)_.

Although there is no definitive answer to who created the first yo-yo, the first recorded occurrence of the yo-yo _(3)_ 500 BC in Greece. Besides being a simple toy, yo-yos have been used as religious offerings, fashion accessories among the European aristocracy, and parts of NASA space experiments.

The modern yo-yo was _(4)_ to America in the 1920s by Pedro Flores. His company produced yo-yos that were unique _(5)_ the string was looped around the axle instead of being tied to it and thus allowed the yo-yo to spin at the end of the string. Known as "sleeping," this gave the yo-yo the _(6)_ to do an infinite number of tricks, which is at the heart of yo-yoing today. However, it wasn't _(7)_ businessman Donald F. Duncan bought Flores' company, created the Duncan Yo-Yo, and launched a massive promotional campaign in the US and Western Europe that the demand for yo-yos shot through the roof.

Duncan's sure-fire method to attract interest was to hold yo-yo contests, which are still _(8)_ today. After a revived interest in yo-yos in the early 1990s, regional, national, and international competitions started _(9)_. Held annually in August in Orlando, Florida and New York City respectively, the World Yo-Yo Contest and the International Yo-Yo Open showcase the best yo-yo masters performing _(10)_ one- and two-handed tricks. Guess what? There's even one in Taiwan, so grab your yo-yo and show off by shooting the moon!

(A) in that (B) until   (C) introduced  (D) mad (E) ups and downs

(F) amazing (G) effective   (H) dates back to   (I) capacity    (J) springing up

     你知道怎么『带狗散步』、『乾坤大挪移』或『时钟摇摆』吗？如果你做得到，那你就是那些为溜溜球以及用溜溜球表演各种招式疯狂不已的数百万人之一。溜溜球就是沿着细绳上下滚动的一个圆轴，这种手控式玩具经历过许多起起落落。

　　 虽然发明溜溜球的始祖究竟是谁并无确切答案，但溜溜球出现的最早纪录可追溯至公元前 500 年的希腊。溜溜球除了可做为简单的玩具，还曾被当作宗教祭祀、欧洲贵族的时尚配件，以及美国航天总署的太空实验用品。

　　现代版的溜溜球由佩卓‧佛洛斯于 20 年代引进美国。他的公司制造出来的溜溜球很特别，因为细绳是缠在圆轴上，而不是绑在圆轴上，所以溜溜球可以在细绳末端空转。这种空转就叫做『悬停』，让溜溜球可以延伸出数不清的花式表演，也就是今日玩溜溜球的精神所在。然而，一直到唐诺‧邓肯买下佩卓的公司，推出『邓肯溜溜球』，并且在美国和西欧展开大肆宣传活动，才让溜溜球的销售一飞冲天。

　　邓肯吸引人兴趣的必胜绝招就是举办溜溜球比赛，这招如今依然有效。在 90年代初期，溜溜球热潮卷土重来，掀起一连串地方、全国和国际性的比赛。世界溜溜球大赛和国际溜溜球公开赛每年 8月分别在佛罗里达的奥兰多以及纽约市举行，各路溜溜球高手聚集在此表演单手及双手的惊人花招。你知道吗？连台湾也有这样的比赛，所以赶紧抓起你的溜溜球，露一手『雷霆扫月』的绝技吧！

答案：  1. (D)  2. (E)  3. (H)  4. (C)  5. (A)  6. (I)  7. (B)  8. (G)  9. (J)  10. (F)

For Your Information

溜溜球可以是一项收藏，就跟收集电话卡、邮票、古董带来的乐趣一样。从第一颗溜溜球到现在，世界各国所发行的溜溜球可以说是不尽其数，其样式、材质、图案变化之多令人眼花撩乱。国外有专门介绍收藏溜溜球的书，还有专门收藏溜溜球的博物馆。

溜溜球也可以是一种艺术。有人用喷枪或颜料在木制的溜溜球上彩绘出漂亮的图形，也有人用雕刻刀刻出令人赏心悦目的图案，甚至有人用激光技术在溜溜球上作画，还镶上各种不同颜色的宝石，只要你的想象空间够大，溜溜球也可以发展成一种艺术。