VOA流行美語 Unit 163:bang for the buck和number cruncher
Larry和李華正在紐約蘇活區吃午飯。兩人聊起了自己的暑期工作。今天李華會學到兩個常用語：Bang for the buck和number crunchers。
LL: Did I tell you that my boss has decided to advertise his business online? He says newspaper advertisements are too expensive and believes the Internet will reach more people.
LH: 你老闆的主意很好啊。在因特網上登廣告當然比在報紙上登廣告要便宜，而且看到的人還會多很多呢。
LL: Yes it does. He figures that for a fraction of the cost, he will get more bang for his buck!
LH: 花一點點錢就能怎麼啦？More bang for his buck?那是什麼意思呀？
LL: More bang for your buck... Bang for the buck is when someone gets more value for the money they put into something. "Buck" is another way of saying dollars or money.
LH: 我懂了！Bang for the buck就是※花最少錢取得最大效果§。也就是成本低，收效高，很合算的意思啦。就像我們現在吃的自助餐，每人只要4美元，就可以吃到各式各樣的菜色，還有可口的點心，像冰淇淋、蛋糕等等。
LL: That's right Li Hua, by paying less and eating more you are getting more bang for your buck.
LH: 這麼說來，昨天我到艾爾加油站去加油，也是很合算的。I got more bang for my buck!
LL: How's that?
LH: 那個加油站昨天在大促銷啊！一加侖汽油只要1塊5美元呢！
LL: US$1.50 a gallon! That's incredible! Prices at most stations now are as high as US$2.70 a gallon. You definitely got more bang for your buck!
LH：沒錯，有的加油站都快要三美元一加侖了。你好象沒有聽說過艾爾加油站。我明天帶你去，so that you can get more bang for you buck too!
LL：That sounds good!
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LH: 對了，Larry，你還沒說你老闆決定在那個網站上登廣告？
LL: He says he would like to put his advertisement on the Website for the New York Times. Of course, that really depends on what his number cruncher says about the idea.
LH: 你老闆想把廣告登在紐約時報的網站上。不過，什麼是number cruncher？那是什麼意思？
LL: A number cruncher is someone who is good with numbers, like an accountant.
LH: 等，等。Number就是數字；cruncher這個詞來自crunch，就是在嘴巴里咀嚼，crunch後面加上e, r, 就成了咀嚼的人。咀嚼數字...？噢，我知道了，a number cruncher就是會擺弄數字的人，也就是象會計那樣會算帳的人。你的老闆一定很信任公司的會計。
LL: Who happens to be his wife.
LH：原來你們公司的會計就是你老闆的太太呀？
LL：When he and his wife first started their business he was in charge of the finances. That didn't last long. When they found themselves $10,000 in debt they knew something had to change.
LH: 公司開辦時，你的老闆管帳，結果一下就虧了一萬美元呀！所以後來才讓他太太來管帳的。
LL: Yes. In six months, she helped turn the business around and now they are making as much as $10,000 a month in profit.
LH: 喲， 你老闆的太太真厲害。她不但扭轉了虧損，現在一個月就能贏利一萬美元哪！我可最怕數字的。
LL：I am not a number cruncher either. She's a real number cruncher。
今天李華學到兩個常用語。第一個是bang for the buck，意思是花最少錢得到最大的效果，
