經典科幻文學:《銀河系漫遊指南》第17章1

Chapter 17
After a fairly shaky start to the day, Arthur's mind was beginning to reassemble itself from the shellshocked fragments the previous day had left him with. He had found a Nutri-Matic machine which had provided him with a plastic cup filled with a liquid that was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea. The way it functioned was very interesting. When the Drink button was pressed it made an instant but highly detailed examination of the subject's taste buds, a spectroscopic analysis of the subject's metabolism and then sent tiny experimental signals down the neural pathways to the taste centres of the subject's brain to see what was likely to go down well. However, no one knew quite why it did this because it invariably delivered a cupful of liquid that was almost, but not quite, entirely unlike tea. The Nutri-Matic was designed and manufactured by the Sirius Cybernetics Corporation whose complaints department now covers all the major land masses of the first three planets in the Sirius Tau Star system.
Arthur drank the liquid and found it reviving. He glanced up at the screens again and watched a few more hundred miles of barren greyness slide past. It suddenly occurred to him to ask a question which had been bothering him."Is it safe?" he said.
"Magrathea's been dead for five million years," said Zaphod, "of course it's safe. Even the ghosts will have settled down and raised families by now." At which point a strange and inexplicable sound thrilled suddenly through the bridge — a noise as of a distant fanfare; a hollow, reedy, insubstantial sound. It preceded a voice that was equally hollow, reedy and insubstantial. The voice said "Greetings to you ..."
Someone from the dead planet was talking to them.
"Computer!" shouted Zaphod.
"Hi there!"
"What the photon is it?"
"Oh, just some five-million-year-old tape that's being broadcast at us."
"A what? A recording?"

第十七章
一天就這樣開始了。經歷了這樣一個令人相當不安的開頭後，阿瑟的思維開始從前一天留給他的那些混亂的碎片中重新集中起來。他發現了一臺自動營養機，這爲他帶來了一杯不太像但也並非完全不算是茶的飲料。這臺機器工作的原理非常有趣。按鈕按下去後，它就會對這個人的味蕾進行一次迅速但詳細的檢查，藉助分光鏡分析他的新陳代謝，然後向連接他大腦味覺中心的神經中樞發射微弱的試驗信號，以測試什麼樣的口味比較合適。然而，沒有人知道它爲什麼要做這一系列的事情，因爲它最後總是提供一杯不太像但也並非完全不算是茶的飲料。這臺自動營養機也是由天狼星控制系統公司設計和製造的，它的投訴部目前只受理來自天狼星系陶星系統內三顆行星上主要的大陸的業務。
阿瑟喝下這杯飲料，發現它相當提神。他瞟了一眼屏幕，看到飛船又越過了幾百英里灰暗而貧瘠的土地。他突然想到要問一個一直困擾着他的問題。“這地方安全嗎？”他問。
“曼格拉斯已經死去500萬年了，”贊福德解釋說，“當然是安全的。到了現在，甚至連鬼魂都應該安頓下來成家立業了。”這時，控制橋內突然響起了一陣奇怪的解釋不清的響聲一一彷彿遙遠的號角，空洞、尖利、似幻似真。接下來，一個同樣空洞、尖利、似幻似真的聲音說道：“歡迎你們……”
這顆已經死亡的星球上有人在對他們說話。
“電腦！”贊福德吼道。
“哥們，你好哇！”
“這是什麼聲音？”
“哦，只是一些有着500萬年曆史的錄音帶正在向我們廣播。”
“什麼？錄音帶？”。