看紐約時報學英文/英語

看紐約時報學英文/英語
(2/25/2011)

2/23/2011
1. cut to the chase
Books of The Times
In Florida Slough With the Gators and Family Ghosts
By JANET MASLIN
Published: February 16, 2011
Karen Russell, author of the wave-making debut novel “Swamplandia!,” was on New York Magazine’s 2005 list of 27 impressive New Yorkers under the age of 26. In 2009 she received a 5 Under 35 award from the National Book Foundation. Last year she wound up on The New Yorker’s 20 Under 40 list. Nice numbers. But cut to the chase: Ms. Russell is one in a million.

Cut to the chase意思就是Get to the point。直接了當、說出重點。

2. hard-nosed
January 28, 2011, 3:26 pm Davos 2011
‘WindMade’ May Soon Join Other Feel-Good Labels
By ERIC PFANNER
DAVOS, Switzerland — Many consumers seek out labels certifying goods as organic or recycled. Soon, another feel-good logo may appear on supermarket shelves, showing that a product was made with power from a sustainable resource, wind.
...
Indeed, the forum’s public commitment to greenness is not always reflected in the hard-nosed business calculations of some of its members.

Hard-nosed，用比較口語的話講，就是tough (guy)的意思。中文就是頑強的、倔強的。
Longman字典解釋為：not affected by emotions, and determined to get what you want.

2/25/2011 3.
on the fritz
For Cuomo, Both Politics and Family Fit in the R.V.
By NICHOLAS CONFESSORE
Published: July 15, 2010

MAHOPAC, N.Y. — Every summer, thousands of recreational vehicles take to the road, lazily cruising down the blacktop across America. This year, one will be carrying the Democratic candidate for governor of New York.
...
“It’s a little warm today. The air-conditioner’s on the fritz. It’s a little bit like a toaster oven on wheels,” he said.

On the friz是美國俗語，故障的意思。
Longman字典解釋為：If something is or goes on the fritz, it is not working correctly
Answers.com上引用Oxford Dixtionary of Slang解釋為：
on the fritz: out of order, unsatisfactory. (1924 —) .
字的來源不明。