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Dark Hair Was Common Among Vikings, Genetic Study Confirms

They may have had a reputation for trade, braids and fearsome raids, but the Vikings were far from a single group of flaxen-haired, sea-faring Scandinavians. A genetic study of Viking-age human remains has not only confirmed that Vikings from different parts of Scandinavia set sail for different parts of the world, but has revealed that dark hair was more common among Vikings than Danes today.
維京人或許以貿易、髮辮，以及讓人聞風喪膽的燒殺擄掠聞名，但是他們並非全部來自單一群體，不只是一群亞麻色頭髮、經年航海的斯堪地那維亞人。近日一項維京時代人類遺骸的基因研究，證實維京人從斯堪地那維亞半島的不同地區揚帆航向世界各地，更透露維京人頭髮多為深色，跟今日的丹麥人相比更為普遍。

What's more, while some were born Vikings, others adopted the culture — or perhaps had it thrust upon them. "Vikings were not restricted to blond Scandinavians," said Eske Willerslev, a co-author of the research from the University of Cambridge and the University of Copenhagen.
更重要的是，儘管有些北歐人天生就是維京人，其他族群也會吸收維京文化──或是可能被迫接受。該研究由英國劍橋大學和丹麥哥本哈根大學合作，共同作者之一艾斯克‧威勒斯列夫指出：「維京人並非僅限於金髮碧眼的斯堪地那維亞人。」

Writing in the journal Nature, Willerslev and colleagues report how they sequenced the genomes of 442 humans who lived across Europe between about 2,400BC and 1,600AD, with the majority from the Viking age — a period that stretched from around 750AD to 1050AD. The study also drew on existing data from more than 1,000 ancient individuals from non-Viking times, and 3,855 people living today.
在這篇刊登於《自然》期刊的研究中，威勒斯列夫和他的同事闡述他們如何定序四百四十二人的基因體。這些研究對象來自歐洲各地，大約生活在西元前兩千四百年到西元一千六百年間，其中大多數人屬於維京時代──也就是橫跨西元七百五十年到一千零五十年之間的時期。該研究也運用現有的基因資料，其中包括超過一千名並非生活在維京時代的古老人類，以及三千八百五十五名現代人。

Among their results the team found that from the iron age, southern European genes entered Denmark and then spread north, while — to a lesser extent — genes from Asia entered Sweden. "Vikings are, genetically, not purely Scandinavian," said Willerslev. However, the team found Viking age Scandinavians were not a uniform population, but clustered into three main groups — a finding that suggests Vikings from different parts of Scandinavia did not mix very much.
在他們的研究結果中，團隊發現南歐的基因在鐵器時代進入丹麥，而後往北傳播，也有少部分來自亞洲的基因進入瑞典。威勒斯列夫指出：「維京人，從基因上來說，並非純然是斯堪地那維亞人。」另外，團隊發現維京時代的斯堪地那維亞人並非種族齊一的人口，而是由三個主要族群組成──這項發現顯示：來自斯堪地那維亞不同地區的維京人並未充分融合。

The team found these groups roughly map on to present-day Scandinavian countries, although Vikings from south-west Sweden were genetically similar to their peers in Denmark. Genetic diversity was greatest in coastal regions. Further analysis confirmed the long-standing view that most Vikings in England came from Denmark, as reflected in place names and historical records, while the Baltic region was dominated by Swedish Vikings, and Vikings from Norway ventured to Ireland, Iceland, Greenland and the Isle of Man.
團隊表示，這些族群的分布範圍大約和今日的北歐三國疆界疊合，不過瑞典西南部的維京人在基因上和丹麥維京人較為相近。基因多樣性則在沿岸地區最為顯著。進一步的分析更證實一項存在已久的學界看法：英國大多數的維京人來自丹麥，正如同地名和歷史紀錄反映出的情況，而巴爾幹地區是由瑞典維京人統治，至於挪威的維京人則冒險前往愛爾蘭、冰島、格陵蘭以及今日的英屬曼島。

However, the team says remains from Russia revealed some Vikings from Denmark also travelled east. The study also revealed raids were likely a local affair: the team found four brothers and another relative died in Salme, Estonia, in about 750AD, in what is thought could have been a raid, with others in the party likely to have been from the same part of Sweden.
不過，團隊指出，來自俄國的遺骸顯示，丹麥的維京人也曾往東方旅行。研究也透露維京人的劫掠可能只是「地方事件」：團隊發現，有四名兄弟和一名親戚，大約在西元七百五十年死於愛沙尼亞的薩爾梅，看起來是一場劫掠的結果，其他參與者可能也來自瑞典的同一個地區。

In addition, the team found two individuals from Orkney, who were buried with Viking swords, had no Scandinavian genetic ancestry. "[Being a Viking] is not a pure ethnic phenomenon, it is a lifestyle that you can adopt whether you are non-Scandinavian or Scandinavian," said Willerslev, adding that genetic influences from abroad both before and during the Viking age might help explain why genetic variants for dark hair were relatively common among Vikings.
此外，團隊還發現兩名奧克尼群島的個體，遺骸旁有維京劍陪葬，但是這兩人沒有斯堪地那維亞的基因世系。「（身為維京人）並不是單純的人種學現象，無論你是不是斯堪地那維亞人，都可以採取這種生活方式，」威勒斯列夫補充表示，來自國外、在維京時代之前，以及該時代期間的基因影響，也許可以解釋為什麼深色頭髮的基因變異在維京人當中相對普遍。

Steve Ashby, an expert in Viking-age archaeology from the University of York, said the study confirmed what had been suspected about movement and trade in the Viking age, but also brought fresh detail. "The evidence for gene flow with southern Europe and Asia is striking, and sits well with recent research that argues for large-scale connectivity in this period," he said. "[The study] also provides new information about levels of contact and isolation within Scandinavia itself, and offers an interesting insight into the composition of raiding parties."
英國約克大學的維京時代考古學專家史蒂夫‧阿什比指出，這項研究證實了先前科學家對於維京時代遷徙和貿易活動的猜測，並且帶來新的細節。「（維京人與）南歐以及亞洲基因流動的證據相當驚人，也吻合近年研究主張這段時期大規模的人類交流情況。」阿什比表示：「（這項研究）傳達新的資訊，透露斯堪地那維亞半島內部交流和隔離的程度，並且提供有趣的見解，讓我們一窺強盜集團的組成。」
Source: https://www.taipeitimes.com/News/lang/archives/2020/09/27/2003744127

Finland Has Faith in the Euro

Finland is, in many ways, the anti-Greece.
芬蘭，在許多方面，是希臘的反面。

Like Greece, it is geographically far from the core Western European powers of Britain, France and Germany. And like Greece, it uses the euro currency. But unlike Greece, it is a model of sound governance and responsible use of debt.
像希臘的是，芬蘭的地理位置遠離英國、法國、德國等西歐核心強權。不同於希臘的是，芬蘭是穩健治理與負責舉債的模範。

Yet Finland's economy is also not doing so great, with an 11.8 percent unemployment rate and with contracting gross domestic product in the last three years.
但是芬蘭的經濟不算挺好，失業率11.8%，而且過去三年國民生產毛額萎縮。

A number of American commentators have looked at Finland's current economic troubles as a clear sign that what ails the eurozone is far deeper than profligate spending by the Greeks. Paul Krugman has made that case at The New York Times, Tim Worstall at Forbes and Matt O'Brien at The Washington Post.
某些美國評論者檢視芬蘭當前的經濟困境，認為這顯示出歐元區的毛病遠比希臘的揮霍更嚴重。保羅．克魯曼，提姆．伍思道和麥特．歐布萊恩分別在《紐約時報》、《華盛頓郵報》和《富比世》雜誌上發表了此一主張。

Alexander Stubb, the Finnish finance minister, thinks they're wrong. I brought this up with him recently in Espoo, the Helsinki suburb where he lives. His vigorous defense of what the euro has done for Finland, and his comments help explain why elite opinion about the euro is so different on the two sides of the Atlantic.
芬蘭財政部長亞歷山大．斯圖布認為他們都錯了。筆者日前在斯圖布位於赫爾辛基郊區埃斯波的住所提出這個話題。他為歐元給芬蘭帶來的好處強力辯護，而他的評論有助於理解何以大西洋兩岸菁英對於歐元的看法如此南轅北轍。

There are three main causes of Finland's economic weakness. Nokia has gone from the world's largest mobile phone maker to an afterthought, costing thousands of Finnish jobs and many more when its supply network is counted. Demand for paper, another major export, has fallen. And the economy of neighboring Russia, with which Finland has deep trade ties, has collapsed because of plummeting oil prices and Western sanctions.
芬蘭的經濟疲弱有三個原因。諾基亞從全球最大手機製造商淪為配角，數以千計的芬蘭人因此失業；倘若把供應網一併算進來，失業人數會更多。芬蘭的另一項主要出口項目是紙，需求也下滑。芬蘭與毗鄰的俄羅斯有很密切的貿易往來，而俄國經濟也因為油價重挫和西方的制裁而大壞。

Because Finland has used the euro since its inception, the value of its currency cannot adjust in ways that would cushion the overall Finnish economy from those shocks. If Finland still had its old currency, the markka, it would have fallen in value on international markets. Suddenly other Finnish industries would have had a huge cost advantage over, say, German competitors, and they would have grown and created the jobs to help make up for those lost because of Nokia and the paper industry and Russian trade.
因為芬蘭從歐元一登場就開始使用，所以無法藉由自行調整匯率的方式來降低芬蘭經濟所遭受的衝擊。假如芬蘭現在用的是原本的貨幣芬蘭馬克，在國際市場將會貶值。其他芬蘭產業將突然享有重大的成本優勢，像是對上德國的競爭對手，產業將持續成長，創造職缺，協助彌補因為諾基亞、紙業和俄國經濟走軟而損失的工作機會。

"Rubbish," Mr. Stubb said. To evaluate the euro, you can't just look at what he calls a current "rough patch" for the Finnish economy. You have to look at a longer time horizon. In his telling, the integration with Western Europe — of which the euro currency is a crucial element — deepened trade and diplomatic relations, making Finland both more powerful on the world stage and its industries better connected to the rest of the global economy. That made its people richer.
「一派胡言，」斯圖布說。他說，要評價歐元不能光看他所謂芬蘭經濟當前的「黑暗期」。你得從較長的時間範圍著眼。照他的說法，芬蘭與西歐整合歐元是關鍵要素，而這整合深化了貿易與外交關係，讓芬蘭在世界舞台上更有力量，芬蘭的產業與全球經濟也有更好的連結；這使得人民更富裕。

"In the early 1990s in the middle of a Finnish banking crisis and economic depression, we were a top 30 country in the world in per capita G.D.P.," he said. "Then we opened up; we became members of the E.U. Now we're always up there in G.D.P. per capita or whatever other measure you look at with Sweden, Denmark, Australia and Canada."
「在1990年代初期，芬蘭銀行危機和經濟蕭條之際，我們的人均GDP（國內生產毛額）排在全球前30名，」他說。「然後我們開放了，變成歐盟的會員國。現在無論你是用人均GDP或其他衡量標準，芬蘭都和瑞典、丹麥、澳洲與加拿大位在同一個等級。」

As to whether the ability to devalue its currency would help deal with the current economic downturn, Mr. Stubb is similarly skeptical. "Devaluation is a little like doping in sports," he said. "It gives you perhaps a short-term boost, but in the long run, it's not beneficial. Just like anyone else, we need structural reform, structural adjustment; we need to increase our competitiveness, and a little bit of luck."
至於具備讓貨幣貶值的能力是否有助於處理當前的經濟衰退，他同樣存疑。「貶值有點像是運動賽事服用禁藥，」他說。「或許能在短期內增進你的表現，但長期而言並沒有好處。跟任何其他人一樣，我們需要結構性的改革，結構性的調整；我們需要增強競爭力，再加上一點點好運道。」
Source: https://paper.udn.com/udnpaper/POH0067/283515/web/

In Sweden, Happiness from a Shorter Workday Can't Overcome the Cost

A controversial experiment with a six-hour workday in one of Sweden's largest cities wrapped up this week with a cheerful conclusion: shorter working hours make for happier, healthier and more productive employees. There's just one catch. The practice is too expensive and unwieldy to become widespread in Sweden anytime soon.
把工時減為6小時的一項爭議性實驗，上個月在瑞典最大城市之一結束，得到了愉悅的結論：較短的工時使員工更快樂、更健康，也更有生產力。只有一個但書。這種作法太昂貴也太不方便，短時間內難以拓展到瑞典全國。

The two-year trial, which took place in the southern city of Gothenburg, centered on a municipal retirement home where workers were switched to a six-hour day, from eight hours, with no pay cut. Seventeen new nursing positions were created to make up for the loss of time, at a cost of around 700,000 euros, or $738,000, a year. Although it was small, the experiment stoked a widespread discussion about the future of work, namely whether investing in a better work-life balance for employees, and treating workers well rather than squeezing them, benefits the bottom line for companies and economies.
這項為期兩年的試驗在瑞典南部哥特堡市一處市立養老院進行，員工從每天上班8小時變成6小時，薪水不變。養老院增加了17個養護職缺以填補工時減少導致的人力缺口，每年支出約增加70萬歐元，合73.8萬美元。這項實驗雖然規模不大，卻引發對未來工作的廣泛討論，亦即是否投資於改善員工工作與生活的平衡，善待員工而非壓榨他們，會給企業和經濟帶來根本的好處。

"The trial showed that there are many benefits of a shorter working day," said Daniel Bernmar, the leader of the Left party on Gothenburg's City Council, which had pushed for the experiment. "They include healthier staff, a better work environment and lower unemployment." But the high price tag, and political skepticism about the practicality of a shorter workday, was likely to discourage widespread support for taking the concept nationwide. "The government is avoiding talking about the issue," Mr. Bernmar said. "They're not interested in looking at the bigger picture."
大力推動這項實驗的哥特堡市市議會左派黨領袖貝恩馬說：「這項試驗顯示較短工時有許多好處，包括更健康的員工、更好的工作環境、更低的失業率。」然而由於成本太高，政界又對短工時的實用性抱持懷疑態度，很可能使這項實驗推廣到全境遭受阻力。貝恩馬說：「政府避談這個議題。他們也無意放大眼界來看這件事。」

While a growing number of countries and companies are studying the concept of employee happiness, the idea of improving it through shorter work hours has by no means gained broad traction. In Gothenburg, the City Council's conservative opposition parties derided the experiment as a utopian folly and sought to kill it, citing high costs for taxpayers and arguments that the government should not intrude in the workplace. The current government is also not backing a shorter workweek. Even the handful of progressive political groups aligned with Mr. Bernmar's Left party have not made a six-hour workday in Sweden a priority in their platforms. Nor have large Swedish companies, including multinationals active around the world, embraced the idea. Other Swedish towns that previously conducted limited experiments with a shorter public-sector workweek eventually abandoned the concept, citing high costs and flawed implementation.
儘管研究員工幸福這個概念的國家和企業愈來愈多，透過縮減工時來加以改善的點子卻尚未獲得廣泛迴響。在哥特堡市，市議會保守派反對黨嘲笑這項實驗是烏托邦式的愚行並試圖扼殺它，理由是納稅人負擔太重，以及政府不應干預職場。瑞典政府也不支持縮短每周工作時數。就連與貝恩馬的左派黨結盟的數個進步政治團體，也未將6小時工時列為最重要黨綱。瑞典各大企業，包括活躍於全球的跨國公司，也不熱中於這個點子。另有一些瑞典城鎮曾在公部門實施縮短每周工時的實驗，但最後都放棄這種做法，因為成本太高且執行上也有問題。
Source: https://paper.udn.com/udnpaper/POH0067/310747/web/