In 2009,the country of Samoa prohibited the sale of alcohol for three days to keep people safe while the island nation switched from driving on the right side of the road to driving on the left.The switch was so Samoans could get cheap "hand-me-down"cars from nearby left-side driving New Zealand and Australia.But Samoans weren't too pleased,since most of the cars they owned were designed to drive on the right.
2009年 薩摩亞禁止酒精飲料售賣三日 為了在這個島國從靠右行車轉(zhuǎn)為靠左行車期間 保證人們的安全。這樣做的原因是 薩摩亞人可以從附近靠左行駛的 澳大利亞和新西蘭買到便宜的二手車。但是薩摩亞人也不是很高興,因為他們自己的車都是為靠右行駛設計的。
In fact,2 out of 3 earthlings drive on the right.But why?...There aren't clear and obvious reasons to choose one side over the other,so the origin of driving conventions is a perfect opportunity for the mathematics of game theory and symmetry breaking.Or we can just look at historical evidence.Today's rules evolved from"driving"livestock and carts on the earliest roads.
實際上 三個地球人當中就是兩個是靠右行駛的。但是 為什么呢?對于選擇行車方向的偏好 沒有清晰而明顯的原因,所以說 這種習慣的起源對于數(shù)學上的 博弈論和對稱性破缺而言 是一個完美的機會?;蛘呶覀兛梢钥纯礆v史上的證據(jù)。今天的規(guī)則 是從在古道上“駕駛”牲畜和馬車的規(guī)則演變而來。
Archaeologists view deeper grooves on the left lane leaving an ancient Roman quarry in England as evidence for left-side traffic,since departing wagons would've had heavier loads.And it's possible that this left side convention was in place so right-handed soldiers and knights could draw their weapons more quickly against passing enemies.
考古學家將英格蘭一個古羅馬時期的采石場的文物上 左側車道凹陷更深的現(xiàn)象作為靠左行駛的證據(jù),因為出場的運貨馬車會裝更重的東西。而且 靠左的慣例可能是適當?shù)?因此 偏用右手的士兵和騎士們 能快速抽出自己的武器 迎擊經(jīng)過的敵人。
Whatever the reason,keeping to the left was eventually made into law in England in 1835.And today,most people who drive on the left side live in countries,like India,South Africa,and Australia,which were once British colonies.But that doesn't explain why the rest of the world drives on the right.Some claim that following the French Revolution,drivers there switched to the right to reject the practices of their overthrown aristocracy,but others suggest the French drove on the right all along.
不論什么原因 靠左行駛的規(guī)則 最終在1835年被英格蘭以法律上形式確定下來。時至今日 大多數(shù)有靠左行駛習慣的人們的所在地,像印度 南非 澳大利亞 都是英國曾經(jīng)的殖民地。但是 那不能解釋為什么世界其他地方靠右行駛。有些人聲稱 在法國大革命之后,那兒的駕駛員們轉(zhuǎn)成了靠右行駛 以抵制日貴族的慣例,但其他人說 法國人從來都是靠右行駛。
Regardless,driving on the right side of the road did spread across much of Europe when Napoleon(and later Hitler) imposed their national driving rules on conquered territory.And other countries voluntarily switched to the right to align with their neighbors,like Sweden in 1967,or to veer away from their colonial pasts,like Nigeria and Ghana in the 1970s.
無論如何 靠右行駛的習慣 在拿破侖(而后希特勒)將此強加到被征服領土之后 確實在歐洲大部分地區(qū)被推廣開來。其他的國家自愿改為右行 就像瑞典1967年那樣 以向它們鄰國看齊,或是為了遠離他們的殖民史,就像在七十年代的尼日利亞和加納那樣。
And in the US? Well,America owes its right-sided habit,in part,to the carts and postilion wagons of its early days.Driving either from the ground or from horseback,right-handed men preferred to walk or ride on the left side of the horses,so they could control the animals with their right hand.As a result,they drove their wagons to the right in order to be seated near the center of the road,to see and steer clear of oncoming traffic.
那美國呢 美國靠右行車 在某種程度上是因為,美國早期的左馭馬的馬車。不論是在地上還是馬背上,右撇子喜歡在馬的左邊行走或騎行 這樣他們就可以用右手駕馭牲畜。因此 他們會靠右行車 使得座位靠近路中央,以便于看清和避開迎面而來的車輛.
And that's ultimately the point of driving laws:to keep us safe from the high-speed,two-ton metal projectiles we call cars.
從根本上來說 這就是交通法規(guī)的要義 保證我們在高速行駛的 兩噸重的 拋體一般的汽車中的安全。