经典愚人节恶作剧

2019-08-31

时代英语·初中 2019年3期

How do the Swiss Alps stay so clean？

In 2009， the Swiss Tourism Board showed that they had a good sense of humor when they released a special video showing a fake team of “mountain cleaners” who traveled the countryside every day cleaning up bird poop from rocks on the mountain. Over 30，000 people took an online test that went with the video to see if they could become a mountain cleaner too！ Would you be fooled？

Why not make Venice more colorful？

In 1995， a newspaper in Venice， Italy， made a lot of people angry on April Fools Day. The newspaper printed a story on the front page saying that the citys traditional black gondola boats would now be painted in bright colors. It was a joke of course， but not everyone thought it was funny！

Why dont people in the USA read？

In 2014， the National Public Radio in the US published a link on Facebook with the title “Why Doesnt America Read Anymore？” The joke was that if you clicked the link you saw it was an April Fools Day prank. But nearly 2，000 comments were made on the post， many of them very angry about the lack of reading！ Clearly， they needed to read themselves！

Do you think unicorns are tasty？

In 2012， the British Library made a prank blogpost. The post said that the library had found an old cookbook that gave a recipe for cooking unicorns. It even had a picture showing how to roast the unicorn.

Would Big Ben look better as a digital clock？

In 1980， the BBC reported that Big Ben， the nickname for the Elizabeth Tower at Parliament， needed a new look. To keep up with modern standards， the towers famous clock would be replaced with a digital one. The report promised that the hands of the clock would be given to listeners. The BBC reporters were surprised many people didnt understand the joke and called in！

Can you grow spaghetti at home？

In 1957， the BBC showed a television report about the spaghetti harvest in Switzerland. The report included a video of Swiss farmers picking the spaghetti out of the trees where it “grew”. Many people who saw the report believed it was true and they even called in to the TV station to ask how to grow their own spaghetti tree. The BBC reporters told them to put a piece of spaghetti in some tomato sauce “and hope for the best”.

Are cats the next great super soldiers？

In 2013， the US military announced it would start training cats to work with military police. The announcement said training cats to detect bombs and protect soldiers was cheaper than training dogs to do the same work.

瑞士阿尔卑斯山如何保洁？

2009年的愚人节，瑞士旅游局发布了一个特殊的视频，幽默感十足。视频中，一队人马假扮成“山地清洁工”，每天出没于乡野之间清理山岩上的鸟粪。逾3万人次观看了视频并参加了视频附带的在线测试，看是否能够应征成为山地清洁工！如果是你，你会上当吗？

为什么不能让威尼斯更加色彩缤纷？

1995年的愚人节，意大利威尼斯的一家报纸引发众怒。报纸在头版刊登了一则杜撰的消息，说该市传统的黑色贡多拉游船即日起将被涂上鲜艳的颜色。当然这仅是一个笑话而已，但并非每个读者都把它当作了笑话，有人当真了！

美国人为什么不再阅读？

2014年，美国国家公共广播电台在脸书上发布了一个链接，标题为“为什么美国人不再阅读？”其原本用意是：如果你点击链接，就会发现这是一则愚人节恶作剧。不承想有近2000个读者在此帖下发表评论。许多人表达了他们对缺乏阅读的愤慨！显然他们自己误解上当了！

独角兽好吃吗？

2012年，大英图书馆发表了一篇恶搞的博客帖子。帖子声称，图书馆发现了一本古老的烹饪书，详细讲解了制作美味独角兽的秘方。文中甚至附有一张照片，展示了烤制独角兽的方法。

大本钟改成数字钟更好看吗？

1980年，英国广播公司报道说，大本钟（位于国会的伊丽莎白塔的别名）需要有一个全新的面貌。为了跟上现代化步伐，伊丽莎白塔上的大本钟将被数字时钟取代。报道承诺，时钟的指针将被送给听众。很多听众不知道这是个恶作剧，居然纷纷致电索取详细信息！英国广播公司的记者们对此十分意外！

在家能种意大利面条吗？

1957年，英国广播公司发表了一则电视新闻，新闻报道瑞士的意大利面条喜获丰收。报道附有一段视频，展示的是瑞士农民正从面条树上采摘“长出”的意大利面条。很多观众信以为真，甚至有人打电话到电视台询问如何种植意大利面条树。BBC记者们则回复，把意大利面条放到番茄酱中，“然后期盼有个好收成”。