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物理学和说唱音乐有什么关系？23岁美国女孩凯特-麦克阿尔菲告诉我们：有，很有关系。去年下半年，当LHC正进入世人瞩目的对撞实验的准备阶段时，一段视频也同时迅速吸引了全球互联网用户：几个穿LHC工作服的人在现场摇来摆去，口里念念有词地随节奏“说唱”，把LHC清楚地解释了一通。
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Does rap have anything to do with physics? Twenty-three-year-old Kate McAlpine says – or, rather, sings – that it does. In the second half of last year, when LHC was preparing for the crash research, a video attracted netizens from all over the world. In the video, several people wearing LHC union suits dance while singing Rap, explaining LHC in detail.
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片中的说唱女就是凯特。本月，她“再接再厉”，创作了新曲《稀有同位素》，介绍美国能源部项目“放射性同位素束流装置”，再次成为网络热点。
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This month, her new song, Rare Isotope, which introduces FRIB (Facility for Rare Isotope Beams), was released on the Web. It sounds like she has another winner.
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和其他年轻人一样，凯特有一屋子CD。选择用说唱乐来传播科学，她说，主要还是因为其押韵帮助记忆，歌词丰富能装下更多的内容。
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Like other young people, Kate has a houseful of CDs. Because rap’s rhythm makes it easier to remember its lyrics, Kate came up with the idea of teaching physics through music.
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就读于美国密歇根州立大学时，凯特学习了两个专业：专业写作和物理学。 毕业后，她进入美国物理学会进行科学写作的实习。
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She graduated from Michigan State University with a dual degree in professional writing and physics. After that, she worked as an intern for the American Physics Society.
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当时，LHC项目美国新闻处的一位职员休假，年轻的凯特得以替代她的职位。一天，在和几位实习生同事共进午餐时，她突然冒出一句：“谁下午有空？想不想到底下拍一段说唱视频？”
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The dream came true when a staff member had to go on leave. During a lunch one afternoon, she asked, “Who’s available this afternoon? Anyone want to make a rap video down here?” A few did, and the rest is history.
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凯特和同事们在巨大的红色超导电磁铁前开始了“手舞足蹈”的表演。“说唱”的歌词，凯特其实早写好了。她每天从日内瓦坐40分钟的火车到实验室，车上无所事事，就在脑瓜子里想着创作。作为接待媒体的工作人员，她也很清楚公众想知道哪些关于LHC的知识。
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She had written the lyrics during her 40-minute bus commute from Geneva out to the lab, so Kate and her brave colleagues went down to the huge magnet to film the video.
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经过剪辑处理，这段视频被发送到网络上，并引起了轰动。在一周之内，Youtube上的点击迅速达到了200万。绝大部分的留言都对这种形式的科学传播表示了惊喜和支持。
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Later, she added the rap and posted the video on the web. Within the first week, it had 2 million viewers on YouTube.
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世界各地的人给她来信。物理爱好者们翻译出了歌词的中文、意大利文、德文等各种版本。
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And before long, she was getting letters from around the world. Physics lovers were translating the lyrics into Chinese, Italian and German.
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在LHC内部，科学家们也都普遍持支持态度。詹姆斯说：“你可找对路了！”她甚至被邀请在LHC内部晚会中表演。“我见到的LHC科学家都很喜欢这个视频，他们一点都不保守。”
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Support also came from the LHC itself. “You’ve found the right way,” said James Riordon, media relations head and McAlpine`s former boss at the American Physical Society. “All the LHC scientists here like this video.” Kate was even invited to perform at a LHC evening party.
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现在，凯特在一家CERN下属的新闻机构担任写作工作，也是《新科学家》等科学媒体的作者。
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Now, she works for the news agency associated with CERN. She also writes for magazines like New Scientist.
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她挺喜欢美剧《天才也性感》，这是CBS2007年开始播放的一档关于一个金发美女与四个高智商宅男的爆笑喜剧，本剧最大的亮点就是能把艰深难懂的科学理论掰解的妙趣横生：“我们总能在自己身边人中找到一两个和剧中人物一模一样的人，很好玩。”
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On her free time, she watches The Big Bang Theory (CBS 2007), an American comedy about a Blondie and four clever Otakus. “It’s funny that we can easily find one or two people around us [in the office who are] similar to the characters in [the show],” she said, adding that the comedy explains complex scientific theory in a vivid way.
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如今，凯特决定将“科学说唱”的事业进行到底。她新近借母校之力，创作了新曲《稀有同位素》。记者问她是不是有出唱片的想法。这个姑娘大笑起来，“我没想过，只是觉得好玩才做的。希望有越来越多的人一起来唱科学Rap！”
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But don’t worry: Kate will continue working on her “scientific Rap career”. With the help of her alma mater, she made the new song Rare Isotope. As for whether she’ll publish a disc, she laughs: “I’ve never thought of that before. I just think it’s fun and hope more people can join us, singing scientific rap!”
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