饮水机旁的流言蜚语

經济学中有个有趣的理论叫作“饮水机效应（watercooler effect）”：指的是办公室里围绕着某个大众文化事件的热烈讨论。在我们工作的office里面，或者在公司的休息处，总是会安置一台饮水机以供大家休息时饮用茶水。在饮水机旁碰到相熟的同事有时会停下来聊几句，这种看似不经意的聊天可能变成公司发展的“利器”，当然这种地方也可能是流言蜚语的滋生地。曾经在饮水机旁的你是点子王还是流言传播者？

Garret： Am I crazy， or is it really dry today？

Penelope： Youre not crazy. And the dry air is probably why weve been spending so much time around the watercooler these days.

Garret： ①Yeah， that， and the fact that the office rumor mill is in full swing.

Penelope： Yeah！ ②I heard there was a big project coming up， and only the top 3 sellers in the whole company will have a shot at landing it.

Garret： Really？ I hadnt heard that， though I do have some other juicy tidbits I may or may not have heard upper management going on about.

Penelope： Oh yeah？ What have you heard？

Garret： ③Just that the companys stock is about to take a dive， so a bunch of the board members are bailing while they still can. They figure its better to just cut and run if they wanna minimize their losses.

Penelope： Are you sure？ Because， you know， if news gets out about this， its gonna be pandemonium around here. What if people start jumping out of windows， like when the stock market crashed in the Great Depression？

Garret： Well， that would be going a bit overboard. ④But I know what I heard， and this company is pretty much on its last legs.

Penelope： ⑤Well， youll have to forgive me if I take your warning with a grain of salt. I mean， over the years， Ive heard just about every rumor you could imagine pass from wise lips to discerning ears next to this old watercooler， and only a small percentage of all that gossip turned out to be true. Now， Im in no way accusing you—

Garret： …of being a rumor monger？ Because thats sure what it seems like.

Penelope： No， I know youre a standup guy. This is actually all part of the Watercooler Effect.

Garret： The what， now？

Penelope： The watercooler has a lot to do with why we spread rumors， why we believe them， and how they mutate， and how they can be managed.

Garret： ⑥So， level with me Penny. Youre saying that this is a real thing？ That a watercooler can actually influence the spread of rumors？

Penelope： First of all， its not just me saying it. But yes， scientists have proven that proximity can essentially facilitate the spread of information， so friends or colleagues who meet face to face are in fact more likely to communicate with one another than those who live or work far apart.

Garret： But how about the truthfulness of the information given？ Is telling people potentially important information over phone calls， texts and emails seen as unreliable？

Penelope： Thats up for debate. But I happen to believe a certain theory that people come up with their best ideas when grouped together informally.

Garret： Well， wed better get back to our desks. I heard that they installed new cameras to see whos at their desks and whos not.

Penelope： Ugh…You and your rumors…

加勒特：是我疯了，还是今天天气真的太干燥？

佩内洛普：你没有疯。干燥的空气可能导致我们最近都花太多时间待在饮水机旁。

加勒特：没错，是那样，而且事实上办公室的流言正传得沸沸扬扬的。

佩内洛普：是的！我听说有大项目要开展，整个公司只有最顶尖的三名销售人员有机会参与项目。

加勒特：真的吗？我没听说过，但我确实听过其他一些让人津津乐道的花边新闻，但其不一定从高级管理层的讨论中得知。

佩内洛普：哦，是吗？你听到了什么？

加勒特：就是公司的股票即將大幅下跌，一群股东趁还来得及的时候纷纷退股。他们认为如果想要把损失降到最低，最好就是斩仓逃离。

佩内洛普：你确定吗？因为，你懂的，如果相关消息公布出来，这里会掀起轩然大波。如果人们开始跳楼自杀，就像大萧条时期股市崩盘的时候一样，那该怎么办？

加勒特：嗯，那就有点走极端了。但我明白我所听到的，这家公司大致上气数将尽了。

佩内洛普：呃，如果我对你的忠告半信半疑的话，你得原谅我。我的意思是，多年来，我在这台老饮水机旁听到的每一个流言，你可以想象它从智者的嘴里传到有辨别力的人的耳朵里，所有这些流言蜚语中只有一小部分被证明是事实。现在，我不是要指责你——

加勒特：……指责我是个谣言散布者？因为你确实好像是这个意思。

佩内洛普：不，我知道你是个值得信赖的人。这确实是饮水机效应的全部。

加勒特：什么，现在吗？

佩内洛普：饮水机跟我们为什么散播流言、为什么相信流言、它们如何变异的和如何被管理的有很大关系。

加勒特：那么，老实告诉我，佩妮。你说的是实情？一台饮水机能确确实实影响到谣言的传播？

佩内洛普：首先，不只是我在说这事。然而是的，科学家证明了彼此空间的接近本质上能有助于信息的传播，所以面对面相见的朋友或同事事实上比那些生活或工作都分开很远的亲友更有可能彼此沟通。

加勒特：但是我们收到的信息的真实性如何？是要告诉人们通过电话、短信和邮件传达的重要信息都有可能不可靠吗？

佩内洛普：那有待商榷。但我相信的某个理论说，当人们非正式集合在一起的时候，他们能想出最好的点子。

加勒特：嗯，我们最好回到自己的座位上。我听说他们安装了新的摄像头，看看谁在自己的座位上，谁不在。

佩内洛普：唷……你和你的谣言……

Smart Sentences

① Yeah， that， and the fact that the office rumor mill is in full swing.

没错，是那样，而且事实上办公室的流言正传得沸沸扬扬的。

in full swing： at the highest level of activity or operation（正全力进行中，正处于全盛时期）。例如：

When I went back to the office， the preparation for tomorrows celebration was in full swing.

我回到办公室时，明天庆祝活动的准备工作正如火如荼地进行着。

② I heard there was a big project coming up， and only the top 3 sellers in the whole company will have a shot at landing it.

我听说有大项目要开展，整个公司只有最顶尖的三名销售人员有机会参与项目。

have a shot at sth.： have a chance for sth.（有机会）。例如：

I dont think you and I have a shot at getting a raise this time.

我觉得我跟你这次都没有机会加薪。

③ Just that the companys stock is about to take a dive， so a bunch of the board members are bailing while they still can.

就是公司的股票即将大幅下跌，一群股东趁还来得及的时候纷纷退股。

take a dive： plummet; fall sharply（急剧下降）。例如：

The companys sales took a dive after the food poisoning incident.

自从发生了食物中毒事件，公司的销售一落千丈。

④ But I know what I heard， and this company is pretty much on its last legs.

但我明白我所听到的，这家公司大致上气数将尽了。

on its last legs： about to stop working or become nonfunctional（最后一程，气数将尽）。例如：

They said the printer is on its last legs and we should try to find a new one.

他们说那台打印机快不行了，我们应该找台新的。

⑤ Well， youll have to forgive me if I take your warning with a grain of salt.

呃，如果我对你的忠告半信半疑的话，你得原谅我。

take sth. with a grain of salt： not fully believe sth.（半信半疑）。例如：

This applicants resume is too good to be true. We have to take it with a grain of salt.

這位应聘者的简历好得有点难以相信，我们得持保留态度。

⑥ So， level with me Penny.

那么，老实告诉我，佩妮。

level with sb.： be straight forward with sb.（坦诚对待某人）。例如：

I really think we should level with them about the companys situation.

我真的觉得我们应该把公司的情况告诉他们。